For All Saints’ Day, Luis Argüello, Archbishop of Valladolid and President of the Conferencia Episcopal Española, called on the faithful to approach mortality and grief with clear eyes. Death, Argüello said, is not simply an end, but a passage “a otra orilla de plenitud”. This perspective helps people live “despegados de bienes y honores” – detached from possessions and honours that complicate life.
Argüello sets out his reflections in a pastoral text published on 1 November, entitled “Vida, muerte y vida plena”. He explicitly places it within the framework of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day , two days traditionally devoted in Spain to remembering the dead and hoping for the resurrection. The commemoration, the Archbishop said, offers an opportunity to reflect on transience, responsibility and sources of comfort in faith.
Argüello’s appeal is directed against the exclusion of death from everyday life. He warns against a way of life that makes status, consumption and external recognition absolute. Accepting life’s limits can help people clarify their priorities, act more generously and share grief as a community. He also recognises the value of professional care during illness and at the end of life; it should address the physical, emotional and spiritual dimensions.
The Archbishop distinguishes between doctrine and personal interpretation: Christian hope is not a consolation prize, but a basis for pastoral practice – from supporting the bereaved to addressing guilt and forgiveness. He stresses that expressions of faith in the public sphere are legitimate contributions to social debate, without seeking to replace political solutions.
As President of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, Argüello connects the pastoral perspective with the reality of life in Spain. Against the backdrop of an ageing population and recurring occasions of collective grief – for example after accidents or violent crimes – there is a need for places of remembrance, shared rituals and language that is neither superficial nor moralising. His text invites parishes in the Archdiocese of Valladolid and beyond to use the commemorative days as a “window of opportunity” for conversation, prayer and practical charity.
The publication comes from the Archdiocese of Valladolid and was announced on 1 November. Media reports from Castilla y León picked up its key statements and placed them in the context of this year’s All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day celebrations. The quotations are taken from the Spanish original.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).