On cemeteries

I like cemeteries. I always have, and the older the cemetery is the more I like it.

There is something very comforting and consoling about a cemetery. They are quiet and peaceful and are perfect for reflection.

I have been known to pull off of a highway to take a stroll through a cemetery and more often than not I bless the dead as I drive past a cemetery.

Walking through a cemetery one cannot help but become aware of the brevity of life as you see the dates of birth and of death. Who are these people, some who are remembered by many, others by a few, and still others by none? What were their lives like? What gave their lives purpose and direction? The important things in life come to the bear upon the soul especially when looking at one a few people choose to place on tombstones these days.

Cemeteries are a perfect place to pray, precisely because they help to refocus us on the things eternal.

In a letter written to his brother, Blessed Father Damien of Molokai confessed:

My greatest pleasure is to go [to the cemetery] to say my beads, and meditate on that unending happiness which so many of them are already enjoying.

When was the last time you walked through a cemetery, praying for the dead and for yourself? As summer draws to a close and days grow cooler I would encourage you to do so, pondering, with Blessed Damien, the joys of heaven (not to mention performing a spiritual work of mercy and maybe even gaining an indulgence).

I have often said that if we live with our death in mind that we will live well (or something very near it). Remembering that we will, in fact, die, and that the way we live has impact on our eternal destiny, helps keep us grounded in truth and in love, namely in Jesus Christ.

Such a notion is very often today said to be morbid. It is not; it is quite Christian. Father Damien also wrote to his brother, saying:

I confess to you, my dear brother, that the cemetery and the hut of the dying are my best meditation books, as well as for the benefit of my own soul in view of preparing my instructions.

Living with our own death in mind will also help us show others how to follow Christ. For in meditating upon the Last Things, we cannot help but dwell upon the merciful love of Christ, of him who calls all people to himself. In this way we see the truth of the words of Saint Paul: "None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself" (Romans 14:7).