Joy Cometh In The Morning
ALL SAINTS DAY
In the thirtieth Psalm, its author ends this hymn, writing, "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (v.5). Weeping and sorrow precede joy and felicity; this is a fallen reality... sorrow, then joy. It's strange how often we get things out of order. A celebration of life often follows Christian death, and then, after celebrating, the sorrow of mourning begins. Far too often, the Christian mourns on her own terms and, sadly, does so, apart from the liturgies and sacraments of the church. Our first impulse in the immediate aftermath of death is for 'joy' rather than 'sorrow.' And yet, we cannot escape our humanity; death brings sorrow, pain, and loss. But the Gospel is supernatural or greater than the natural. The Gospel order of reality overcomes grief and affliction is but the precursor to celebration: "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning."
Sorrow proceeds joy. The Great Christian Tradition understands this order and thus provides the liturgy for The Order for The Burial of the Dead because Christian mourning commences with a proper Christian funeral and burial. The body of the loved one is brought into the church to attend their last church service on earth, but the liturgy is not only for the departed but for the living as well. Out of the depths of the soul, we cry unto God within the comfort of Mother Church; the Gospel reading, psalms, and hymns soothing our affliction. The Christian funeral brings us face to face with mortality (for death shall also be our earthly end). Then, we pray for the departed, that God would grant that [the departed] increasing in knowledge and love of [God], may go from strength to strength, in the life of perfect service, in thy heavenly kingdom (BCP, 332).
Then, a solemn procession of tears attends the body to the gravesite where the Christian is committed to holy ground in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection unto eternal life. Then we, the living, profess belief in that sure and perfect hope of Christ's return, that when the Lord Jesus Christ comes again, the sea shall give up her dead, and all the departed saints, all those we love who have fallen asleep in the Lord, WILL BE RAISED unto eternal glory.
A Christian funeral isn't a celebration, but neither is it devoid of hope. "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Christians grieve in hope- it's a bit paradoxical, I know, but hope demarcates Christian sorrow from worldly sorrow. And hope, through enabling grace, refreshes the soul altering the dark hue of sadness, returning light to the eyes and a smile to the face. Hope, my friends, if we grab hold of it, will restore earthly joy.
All Saints Day is a feast day. We have gathered for a solemn celebration. The tolling of death bells has long passed, and the graveside dirt no longer soils the hands. Beloved, you have endured the night; see how the morning has come; this is not a day for weeping but an occasion for joy. Today we revel in the memory of those blessed saints now basking in the sabbath rest of God, members of that great cloud of witnesses, an innumerable multitude who, even now, "stand before the throne and standing before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands." Just imagine (and I don't mean pretend), rather, form in the eye of the mind a vision of the reality of our loved ones who have "shook off this mortal coil" and entered the throng of Divine beatitude.
Behold their face and rejoice, for they are securely sealed in the Lamb's book of life;
Rejoice, for they are in the presence of angels and archangels;
Rejoice, for they worship the Lamb without any hindrance of sin, offering a perfect Eucharist to Christ who saved them out of the tribulations of this life.
St. John's glimpse into paradise isn't some fantastical tale for children nor a conjured-up myth to pacify and masque deaths' real and tangible pain. No, this is a gift: a glimpse into real reality. Every faithful Christian you have known and loved is serving in God's temple right now; night and day, they are serving Him. No longer toiling under Adam's curse, but at peace with God and men; every day is the sabbath; every moment joy.
Tonight, on the Feast of All Saints, we are sharing in their joy, rejoicing for and with them. In just a moment, we will memorialize our beloved departed by speaking their name before the holy altar, which signifies their actual residing at the true altar in the heavenly temple. Though they are worshipping there and we here, and though they are absent from the body, we are still one fellowship, worshipping the One True God. The fragments of heaven and earth have been gathered tonight into Christ's one mystical body, which is the blessed company of all faithful people: the saints in heaven and the saints on earth.
Therefore, my beloved, with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, let us laud and magnify God's glorious name! Rejoice, my beloved, weep not for the dead, for those who have fallen asleep in the Lord. Dear Christian, comfort from the Book of Wisdom,
the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and there shall no torment touch them. In the sight of the unwise, they seemed to die: and their departure is taken for misery, And their going from us seemed to be utter destruction: but they are in peace (Wisdom 3:1-3).
Rejoice, and again I say rejoice. "weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Amen+
