Prayer for the dead is one of Church’s ‘fundamental duties,’ Pope preaches at Mass for deceased cardinals

November 06, 2026

Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on November 5 (video) for the repose of the souls of cardinals and bishops who died in the past year.

“As she was taking leave of her sons, Augustine and Navigius, shortly before her death, Saint Monica said: ‘One thing only I ask of you, that you remember me at the altar of the Lord, wherever you may be,’“ Pope Leo preached. “Here the mystery of death is linked to prayer for the dead, which the Church has practiced from her earliest beginnings as one of her fundamental duties.”

In his homily, the Pope reflected on “two truths that illuminate our prayer for the deceased: hope in the resurrection and the communion of saints.”

“Dear friends, in Christ, death does not dissolve our bonds,” Pope Leo conclulded. “Rather, it transfigures them into a new dimension, which can be understood only in the mystery of his love, given to the very end on the cross and poured out after his paschal victory. By welcoming the charity of the risen Lord in the holy Eucharist, let us therefore preserve and nurture this communion throughout our journey, so that when our own hour comes, we too may receive the prayers of our brothers and sisters still on pilgrimage and rejoice with all the saints in the joy of our heavenly homeland.”

The Vatican newspaper reported that 136 archbishops and bishops who were not cardinals died within the previous year. The seven cardinals remembered at the Mass were Cardinals Dominik Duka, Polycarp Pengo, Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân, Emil Paul Tscherrig, Camillo Ruini, Júlio Duarte Langa, and Paolo Romeo.

Following the Mass, Pope Leo “descended into the Vatican Grottoes for a moment of prayer at the tombs of his predecessors buried there, in particular Pius XII, Saint Paul VI, Blessed John Paul I, Benedict XV, and Benedict XVI,” according to the report.

 

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Further information:

• Holy Mass for the Cardinals and Bishops who have died over the past year (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 11/5/26)
• Holy Mass in memory of the Cardinals and Bishops departed during the course of the year (Holy See Press Office, 11/5/26)
• Pope Leo: In Christ, life has been redeemed (Vatican News, 11/5/26)
• Per celebrare la vita (L'Osservatore Romano, 11/5/26)