On November 2nd, the Church focuses on The Church Suffering (the faithful departed who are being cleansed of their sins in Purgatory).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us about our relationship through Christ with others that is even more powerful than death:
“In this wonderful exchange, the holiness of one profits others, well beyond the harm that the sin of one could cause others. Thus recourse to the Communion of Saints lets the contrite sinner be more promptly and efficaciously purified of the punishments for sin.” (1475)
Did you know that each day Nov 1-8 we can gain a special indulgence for these Poor
Souls, but that All Souls’ Day has an unusual requirement—so easy even a child can complete it?
Here’s a “cheat sheet” for what you need to do on All Souls’ Day and for the rest of the week:
We can help the Faithful Departed by “boosting our prayers” to get a “plenary indulgence” specifically for the dead by following some simple steps included on the back of our newest card.
There are specific requirements–and special ones on All Souls Day!–but this card explains them all.
Perfect to have on hand to distribute to your parish, Catholic school, co-op, prayer or youth group!
PLUS with this card, you can note the names of each person by the date you will offer an indulgence for them–this will act as a reminder to pray for them on that day!
Ken Davison created Glory Stories, which became a weekly radio series heard globally on the Ave Maria Satellite Radio Network and EWTN’s radio network, WEWN. In 2007, he and his wife, Kerri, founded Holy Heroes–and their children stepped in to help shortly thereafter to create the online “Adventures” for Advent, Lent, Spiritual Adoption, and Marian Consecration.
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“Bulk discounts apply.” Selling “plenary indulgences is FRAUD., a crime, subject to excommunication.
What a silly comment: we aren’t selling indulgences, but only selling prayer cards that explain what YOU NEED TO DO to gain the indulgence. You can also download the requirements absolutely free-of-charge. Hope whatever anger you have in your soul is soon healed. May God bless you!
Is the plenary indulgence applied to only one soul? Must that person be buried in the cemetery visited?
Yes–one soul at a time. Must that person be buried in the cemetery visited–No.
Good to know you do not need to be in that cemetery because there is a site called Find A Grave and I visit my family/friends virtually through that site. None are buried in the state I live in. Its a genealogy website, so I can visit the US relative and visit the Irish gravesites also.
Thank you.
Pray for us!
Who did we learn about indulgences from? Is it in the Bible?
We learned about indulgences from the same place we learned about the Bible: the Catholic Church founded by Christ. The Catholic Church actually wrote the New Testament and in the 300’s defined which books from Old and New Testaments were in the Bible as Sacred Scripture and which were not (there were about 50 “Gospels” floating around at the time and dozens of letters from so-called Apostles, so the Church defined in Council the final canon of Scripture, which was then approved by the Pope). Same for indulgences–the Church has defined them and continues to do so based on the teaching of the Church since the Ascension of Christ. Longer explanation here with Scripture, too: https://www.catholic.com/tract/primer-on-indulgences
If Luther had got his information straight, there’d be no “Reformation.”
Are the indulgences for souls valid only from November 1-8 or valid for the whole month of November? Several Internet articles don’t make that clear. They say the indulgences hold for the whole month but then quote criteria that talk only of the first eight days of the month. So what’s the correct position? What do the rules say?
What we have described here are the special indulgences for the first 8 days of November which are only available for the first 8 days of November.
Thanks for all you do for us in the faith! One of our priests said you don’t have to receive Holy Communion each day, to receive an indulgence for a poor soul, but only on days of obligation (Sunday, etc.). Could you clarify? Is it one reception of Holy Communion per indulgence or something? Thanks for checking on this for us.
Your priest is mistaken if he is suggesting that one Holy Communion can be applied to obtain more than one plenary indulgence. Here’s from the Vatican document “The Gift of the Indulgence” (29 Jan 2000) discussing general requirements for a plenary indulgence: “One sacramental Confession suffices for several plenary indulgences, but a separate Holy Communion and a separate prayer for the Holy Father’s intentions are required for each plenary indulgence.” So you must have one Holy Communion per plenary indulgence. Note, however, that you can perform the indulgenced act/work on a separate day than the Confession and Holy Communion–here it is from the same Vatican document: “It is appropriate, but not necessary, that the sacramental Confession and especially Holy Communion and the prayer for the Pope’s intentions take place on the same day that the indulgenced work is performed; but it is sufficient that these sacred rites and prayers be carried out within several days (about 20) before or after the indulgenced act.” So–don’t let not getting Communion on a given day prevent you from doing the indulgenced work that day, then get to Holy Communion as soon as you can. If your priest was trying to tell you that you don’t have to do everything on the same day as the indulgenced act/work, then he is correct. Still, it is still one Holy Communion for each indulgence.
You write in this paragraph that you do not need to receive communion on the same day as the indulgenced act, but the cheat sheet says you must do it on the same day: https://blog.holyheroes.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/indulgence_updated_2021.pdf
Sorry. I stopped reading. Not concise. I cannot find a well written, simple, concise description regarding this information. Sorry. Very sad. I do not want to be a pain, but everywhere and in everything, people no longer know how to write.
You might want to simply print out the “cheat sheet”–it all fits on one page (concise and simple!). God bless!
A (hopefully) kind reminder that when someone feels passionate about something and is eager to help, they sometimes give complete (although not “concise”) information. Being a courteous listener (reader) when receiving an answer is as important as being a concise writer. I appreciated the quotes from Ken’s references, and writing it probably took 10x the time it took me to read. (Thank you, Ken.) “Sad,” I know where your comment came from. This world is wearing on us all. I’ll say a prayer for you now that your overwhelm will be used for your good and eventually taken away. May God bless you today in a special way!
When I did this as a child, I was told we were able to save a soul each time we entered the church, by praying the correct prayers & for the Pope .
Therefore,we went out & in many times for one half (nov.1 st) & one whole day ( nov2nd). Is this incorrect?
The actual teaching of the Church for obtaining a plenary indulgence (saving a soul) is explained, both the acts and conditions under which the acts must be performed. You are not allowed to get more than one plenary indulgence per day. Entering a church over and over again can’t earn more. God bless!
Thank you for all of this great information, and all you do. I do have a question. Can we visit any cemetery, or should we visit a Catholic cemetery?
You can visit any cemetery. Thank you!
Thank you,your information helps a lot.
Hi Mr. Davison,
I am a little confused and need some clarification. On the indulgences for days 1-8 is it ONLY that you need to go to the cemetery and pray for the souls, or do you need to do the 3 steps of an indulgence AND to go the cemetery and pray for the deceased? I’m not sure why it is confusing to only me, but I would love to know since the wording of “When you perform the usual actions for an indulgence” is unclear. Is that to mean the 3 steps? I would appreciate you help in making sense of the wording so I can be sure I am doing everything correctly. Thank you so much for this email and all the work you and your family do for the faithful!
Sincerely,
J.M. McLaughlin
For every indulgence, the is an ACT that you must perform for the indulgence and general CONDITIONS which must be met for that act to obtain the indulgence. Those conditions for every indulgence are the 3 steps, and the act is what is specified for Nov 1-8. Just for perspective, there are a lot of acts that have indulgences attached to them, but for every indulgenced act, no matter what it is, you must fulfill the general conditions.
Dear Ken,
Thank you for details .
I consider myself a devoted Catholic but due to my brain I struggle to retain information . Often embarrassing how little I am able to recall . ADHD not dementia. Will print out at work.
Bless you and loved ones
Thanks… good stuff!
Ken,
Thank you for sharing this information. Something I wonder each November is whether my children who are not yet old enough to receive Communion are able to earn an indulgence for the souls in Purgatory. I’ve never been able to find an answer for this online! (Certainly there is value in them attending Mass and saying prayers, so they come along for everything!)
Here’s what a priest friend (a canon lawyer) told us, “As long as a child can understand what is being done, can form the proper intention to assist self or another with this spiritual good, and performs the prescribed prayers, etc., then it seems clear that an indulgence would be gained. We have little children engage in penitential practices at Lent (e.g., no meat on Fridays), do we not? These would seem to have not only an “instructional/educational value,” but also be true acts of penance which form them spiritually in as much as they can understand and enter into the practices.
My Dear Ken, the Holy Heroes website has increased my knowledge of things Catholic. It an invaluable site that encourages and improves our relationship with God, Our Saviour Jesus Christ, the Angels, Saints and indeed, all human beings. God bless you all, Amen.
Thank you, my five children lost their father (and I my husband) just before advent last year. Being able to perform this act of mercy will give us such hope at such a sad time. Thank you.
Thank you! I learned so much and will share with my family.
Ken,
Thank you for this timely and informative information.