The need and duty of prayer for the dead has been acknowledged by the Church. It is recommended in the Scriptures of the Old Testament: ‘It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins’ (2 Macc. 12: 46). This duty is expressed in public and private prayers but especially in the offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the repose of souls.

A letter from Father Seibt to the people of The Mission of St. Bernadette and St. Mary's.