Every year on 2 November, the Catholic Church sets aside a whole day to pray for the dead: parents, grandparents, friends, and those no one remembers any more. In 2026, All Souls' Day falls on Monday 2 November, the day after All Saints.
It can sound like a sad day, but it is really a hopeful one. Praying for someone who has died says two things at once: that death does not end our bond with them, and that we trust God to finish the good work he began in them.
All Souls and All Saints: what's the difference?
- All Saints (1 November) celebrates everyone who is already in heaven, the famous saints and the countless unknown ones. It is a solemnity and, in many countries, a holy day of obligation (check your own bishops' conference, since rules vary).
- All Souls (2 November), officially the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, is a day of prayer for the dead who may still be being purified before they see God. It is not a holy day of obligation, though many Catholics go to Mass.
The custom of a yearly day for all the departed is usually traced to Saint Odilo, abbot of Cluny, who set 2 November for it in his monasteries around the year 1000. It later spread through the Western Church.
Why Catholics pray for the dead
The Church teaches that those who die in God's grace and friendship, but are not yet fully purified, are sure of salvation, yet still undergo a purification after death so that they can enter the joy of heaven. The Church calls this final purification purgatory. It is not a smaller hell; it is the last stage of being made ready for love (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1030–1031).
Because of the communion of saints, the bond between the living and the dead is not broken. The Church on earth can help those being purified by prayer, above all by offering the Mass for them, and also by almsgiving, indulgences and works of penance (Catechism, 958 and 1032).
This practice is very old. The Catechism points to the Second Book of Maccabees, chapter 12, where Judas Maccabeus has an offering made for fallen soldiers so that they might be freed from their sin.
Above all, the Church prays for the dead because it believes in the resurrection:
John 11:25–26
"Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”"
How All Souls' Day is kept around the world
Customs differ, and grave visits often happen on 1 November, when many people have a day off.
- Poland. Families travel, often long distances, to their relatives' graves around 1 and 2 November. They clean the graves, lay flowers and light znicze, candles in glass holders. The popular name for 2 November is Zaduszki.
- Mexico. Día de Muertos (the Day of the Dead), around 1–2 November, is known worldwide for its home altars (ofrendas), marigolds, photos of the dead and their favourite foods. It is a popular and cultural celebration that blends Catholic and older indigenous traditions; it is not itself a liturgical feast. Many families combine it with Mass and prayer for the dead.
- Italy and Spain. Many families visit cemeteries in the first days of November and bring flowers, often chrysanthemums.
- The Philippines. During Undas, families gather at the graves of their relatives, and some stay for many hours or through the night.
Traditional prayers for the dead
Eternal rest
The best-known prayer for the dead, short enough to say at a grave or when you hear of a death:
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.
May their souls, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
For one person, say "grant unto him" or "grant unto her". Some families add it to grace before meals, or pray it after each decade of the Rosary during November.
Psalm 130 (the De profundis)
Psalm 130 is called the De profundis from its first words in Latin, "Out of the depths". The Church has long prayed it for the dead, and it belongs to the traditional Office of the Dead. It begins:
Psalm 130:1–2
"Out of the depths I have cried to you, LORD. Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my petitions."
The psalm goes on to speak of God's forgiveness and of a soul that waits for the Lord through the night, longing for the morning. Read the whole psalm slowly and pray it on behalf of the person you remember.
A simple prayer for a parent or loved one
Written for this article, not an official prayer of the Church; use it or your own words:
Lord Jesus, you wept at the grave of your friend Lazarus. I bring you [name], whom I love and miss. Thank you for the years you gave us together. Forgive whatever was unfinished between us, and whatever in them still needs your healing. Bring them into your light and your peace, and keep us united in you until we meet again. Amen.
The All Souls indulgence
The Church offers a plenary indulgence, applicable only to the souls in purgatory, in these two ways:
- From 1 to 8 November, on each day, to those who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray for the dead, even silently.
- On All Souls' Day, to those who devoutly visit a church or oratory and pray the Our Father and the Creed there.
The usual conditions apply: sacramental confession, Holy Communion, prayer for the Pope's intentions (an Our Father and a Hail Mary is the common practice), and detachment from all sin, even venial sin. Confession and Communion do not have to fall on the very same day; your parish can tell you how this is applied. If you want to prepare for confession, see our guide on how to go to confession.
In 2020 and 2021, during the pandemic, the Apostolic Penitentiary extended the cemetery indulgence to the whole month of November. Those were special measures for those years; for this year, check with your parish or diocese.
Having a Mass offered for someone
The most traditional way to pray for someone who has died is to have a Mass offered for them. You contact your parish office, give the name of the person, and a priest offers a Mass for that intention. It is customary to give a small offering; the parish will tell you the local practice. Many families do this on the anniversary of a death as well as in November.
Praying through grief
If the death is recent, All Souls' Day can hurt. That is not a lack of faith. Saint Paul did not tell grieving Christians to stop grieving, but to grieve with hope:
1 Thessalonians 4:13–14
"But we don’t want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you don’t grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus."
Praying for someone is also a way to go on loving them now. You can't call them any more, but you can still do something good for them: light a candle, visit the grave, or say the Eternal Rest each night in November. And for the days when words run out, there is the promise at the end of the Bible:
Revelation 21:4
"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more. The first things have passed away.”"
Common questions
When is All Souls' Day in 2026? All Souls' Day is on Monday 2 November 2026. All Saints' Day is the day before, Sunday 1 November.
Is All Souls' Day a holy day of obligation? No. All Souls' Day is not a holy day of obligation, although going to Mass to pray for the dead is strongly encouraged. All Saints' Day on 1 November is a holy day of obligation in many countries.
What is the prayer for the dead? The best-known Catholic prayer for the dead is the Eternal Rest: "Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen." Psalm 130 and the offering of a Mass are also traditional.
Can I gain the All Souls indulgence for myself? No. The November plenary indulgence for visiting a cemetery or a church is applicable only to the souls in purgatory, not to the living.
Remembering in Haven
Haven doesn't have a section of prayers for the dead, but it can help you keep praying through November. Each morning it gives you the Gospel of the day with a short reflection and prayer, and at night the evening examen is a quiet moment to remember those you have lost. If you are going to confession for the indulgence, Haven Premium includes a guided examination of conscience to help you prepare.
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (public domain).