Despite the severe earthquake that hit Izmir and its surroundings on Friday, October 30, “All Saints’ Day” and “Day of Remembrance of the Dead” were held in Izmir.
The Archbishop of the Izmir Latin Catholic Church, Monsignor Lorenzo Piretto, directed the Glorious Feast of all Saints at Karşıyaka Soğukkuyu Catholic Cemetry on November 1st, Sunday afternoon. Father Ugo, the Priest of St. John’s Cathedral accompanied him.
First, the Holy Rosary prayer was said and the tombs were consecrated, then the Sacred Mass was performed in Italian and Turkish.
After reading from the Book of Revelation and l John, Father Ugo read words from the Bible chapter Matthew.
In his sermon, Monsignor Piretto said “The Preaching of Happiness in the Bible we listen to is a call to joy and sainthood. Sainthood and joy are the same thing. One who is in sainthood is also at peace with the Lord, and thus their heart is full of joy. The happiness text shows us the true path to happiness. This path denies all forms of violence; and has thirst for justice, thirst for mercy… We are going through some hard times but if we Show devotion to the Lord, nothing can discourage us and separate us from His love. Todays feast reminds us that we are all called to be saints.”
The next day, on Monday, November 2nd, more people gathered in the Karabakh Paşaköprü Catholic cemetery for the Day of Remembrance of the Dead
While Monsignor Lorenzo Piretto, Archbishop of the Izmir Latin Catholic Church directed the Rite, The General Victory of the Izmir Church, Father Gabriel Ferone, Father Ugo, the Priest of St. John’s Cathedral, Father Ezio, the Priest of the Flag Church of St. Anthony, and several other priests attended.
The celebration started with the prayer of the Holy Rosary and the consecration of the tombs as the previous day, and then the Sacred Mass was celebrated both in Italian and Turkish.
After the readings from the Second Book of the Maccabees and the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, the Deacon Nikola read the words of the Bible written by St. John.
Monsignor Piretto said in his sermon “Today, November 2 and the entire month of November are traditionally dedicated to prayer for the dead,Monsignor Piretto said in his sermon. They are a part of our lives, our history. Them leaving was a hurtfull seperation for us. Praying fort he dead is reviveing our hope against the mysterious reality of death…This prayer also invites us to reflect on our lives and see what makes it valuable. In todays Bible, Jesus Christ invites us to stay in our mission clothes and keep the lamps on. Being uniformed means serving each other, in our family, workplace and wherever we live with humility.”
After the final blessing of the holy mass, all participants said prayers for the salvation of the deceased and for general amnesty (indulgence). (Nathalie Ritzmann (SA-7-TÜRK, İzmir)
