Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.— Psalm 24:(see 6)

Mass Readings: Revelation 7:2-4,9-14 / 1 John 3:1-3 / Matthew 5:1-12 

The Pure of Heart 

On the day we celebrate the feast of all the souls in heaven it’s natural to wonder: How do we become saints? The psalmist puts it another way in today’s responsorial: “Who can go up the mountain of the Lord? Who can stand in his holy place?” Then he answers, “One . . . whose heart is clean.” 

“Beloved,” John says in today’s second reading, “everyone who has this hope . . . makes himself pure.” And the Gospel tells us, “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.” How can we make our hearts pure? For me it’s only with prayerful diligent effort . . . and the grace of God. But the reward — to see our God and to be enfolded in the warmth of His abundant, everlasting love! 

Prayer: Lord, help us to cleanse our hearts and make them pure.