The Bishop of San Sebastián, Monsignor Fernando Prado Ayuso, CMF, has decreed that starting from this year, the third Sunday of November will be celebrated throughout the diocese as a special day of prayer for the deceased, a day that will seek to unite the entire diocesan community in faith around the memory of those who preceded them.
The decree, signed on October 22, 2025, liturgical memorial of Saint John Paul II, provides that the prayer be held “from the first Vespers,” in all parishes, churches, religious communities, and worship centers of the diocese.
A Tradition of Mercy
The text recalls that November is, by tradition, the month that the Church dedicates to praying for the deceased, a time that begins with the Solemnity of All Saints (November 1) and continues with the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (November 2).
Monsignor Prado highlights that this practice is not only a spiritual work of mercy, but also an opportunity to “foster the spirit of family” within the diocese, especially remembering “those who transmitted the faith to us.”
“Praying for our deceased —writes the bishop— helps us keep alive the communion between the generations that form the Church, and to thank for the witness of those who preceded us in faith and pastoral service.”
The Common Prayer for the Deceased
The decree establishes that in the liturgy of that Sunday, a particular intention be included obligatorily in the Prayer of the Faithful both of the Liturgy of the Hours and of the Eucharist, with the following formula:
“For all the deceased of our diocese, especially for those who from generation to generation transmitted the faith to us; that they may share with the saints the joys of heaven. Let us pray.”
This prayer—which may be repeated in religious communities and diocesan centers—seeks to consolidate the spiritual memory of the diocese, recognizing the invisible bond that unites the living faithful and the deceased in the communion of saints.
A Sign of Ecclesial Communion
The institution of this “Diocesan Day of Prayer for the Deceased” thus becomes an invitation to rediscover the communion of saints in a local key: pray together, give thanks together, and hope together.
The decree concludes with the order of its official publication and with the invocation of the intercession of Saint John Paul II, in whose memory it was signed.