I found that cemetery to be a place of quiet hope and a witness to faith. As I walked among the markers, I encountered familiar names, either because they were known to me as part of the parish’s history, or because I presided for their funeral. As I saw their names, I could often call to mind a face or a story from their life. Those stories–their lives–often told of how their life and God’s goodness intersected. I could think of mothers or fathers, husbands and wives, who lovingly labored to raise and care for children; they worked the land on the surrounding farms; they built homes; they tended to the needs of an ailing spouse or child. I thought of children who loved their parents, whose smiles brightened the day, whose accomplishments brought pride, and who tried to make the best choices they could. I could call to mind people of faith, who trusted in God’s goodness and who sought to reveal that goodness in their daily lives. I thought of people whose profound faith permitted them to serenely walk the path home to God, inspiring deeper faith in God in everyone they met or who gathered at their bedside.

Any time I walk through a cemetery, I find it to be a way to honor and pray for those who have died, whose lives, in their own unique fashion, made a difference and revealed their faith and trust in God. I found living beside the cemetery a comforting and reassuring experience. 

The Church’s November calendar encourages us to take the time to reflect on the lives of those who have died, both those whom the Church recognizes as canonized Saints and all the other saints–those people of good faith–whose lives have touched and inspired our own. In our shared faith, and in the quiet witness of the final resting places of our beloved dead, we find hope in the knowledge that death is not the end. As we take time during the month of November to pray for our departed loved ones, we also know that they join together in the Communion of Saints to pray for us. And so, our journey in FAITH continues.