THE CLOUD OF WITNESSES

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Today in the monastery we're celebrating the solemnity of the anniversary of the consecration of our abbey church, St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, by Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley in 1890. (The church had already been dedicated in 1857, but couldn't be consecrated until it was completely paid for.)

By happy coincidence, the second reading at tomorrow's Sunday Mass begins with this familiar passage from the Letter to the Hebrews:


Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,

let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us

and persevere in running the race that lies before us
while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus (Heb. 12:1-2).

The preceding chapters in the letter had given a long, detailed list of the great figures of the Jewish Scriptures whose faith serves as an encouragement to all of us. This is the "cloud of witnesses" the writer is referring to. So as we were singing Lauds (Morning Prayer) this morning in church, looked around at the saints, the colorful "witnesses" in their stained glass windows. I noticed the German inscriptions in the windows, and started to think about the great cloud of witnesses who have worshipped in this building: The earliest monks from St. Vincent Archabbey in Pennsylvania, the German parishioners, the students of St. Benedict's Prep and St. Mary's Elementary School, as well as others who would come for Sunday Vespers, or employees of the nearby courthouse who attend mass here on Holy Days, and the members of the congregation that packs this church every Sunday to sing and shout God's praises at the 10:30 mass.

The communion of saints includes you and me 

Then, as the monks' chanting continued, I imagined the cloud extending to my own ancestors in the faith: grandparents, great-grandparents and so on, back through the ages, people whose faithfulness in handing on the gospel made it possible for my parents to hand on the faith to me.

The cloud then grew to include my two brothers and my sister Eleanor, who died at the age of two,  all of my aunts and uncles and cousins. Then I thought of the students I've taught who have gone on to glory, and the deceased parishioners who listened to my Sunday sermons.

I then realized why the sacred writer referred to a "cloud" of witnesses: because it's quite a varied and disorganized crowd. But today I feel their presence and their encouragement: All of these people of faith are my personal "great cloud of witnesses" who, having already arrived at the heavenly goal, are cheering me on right now, encouraging me to continue to grow in my faith, to fight the good fight and finish the race as they did.

I expect all of them to raise a loud cheer some day when I cross the finish line. Then I'll take my place in the grandstand and start cheering for the next people in the race.