Communion of Saints
November 2, 2025
The saints, they say,
come in a white-robed throng
Carrying palms and olive fronds
Lilies and roses
That turn into bread
They carry babes in arms
And ancients on their backs
Carrying their history, a promise, a hope.
They come in a throng
Carrying plow and calculator
Spade and chalice and laser
Pruning hook and scalpel;
Ideas and dreams and plans.
They come in a throng
Carrying fear and longing
Courage and compassion.
Carrying their mortal fear and their mortality
Blessed are they, carrying meekness and justice
Long suffering amid persecution;
Hands that once clutched prison bars
now embrace each other, the future, and hope.
Blessed are they, the innocent
Pure hearts beating
Willing to witness, whatever the cost.
They come in a throng
Carrying ordinary gifts
Food well cooked and work well done
The silence of solitude and pleasure of sharing.
Blessed are they who carry doves of peace
and hankies for the mourners.
Broken hearts healed by their touch.
They come carrying chains, broken, reforged, broken again
Carrying a word of truth that suddenly outweighs the world.
Blessed are they, Mary and Joseph
Peter and Magdelene,
Agnes and Lucy, Tarcisius and Martin;
Blessed are they, Francis and Clare, Ignatius and Xavier,
Francesca Cabrini and Elizabeth Ann, Teresas of Avila and Calcuta;
Blessed are they, our parents, our children,
old friends who have gone before.
They come home from the fields,
Sheaves on their shoulders
Bread in their aprons, for once, enough for all.
They are our hope.
About this week’s cover: Recently Cardinal Timothy Dolan dedicated a large, multiple panel mural at the entrance of St. Parick’s Cathedral, New York. It was painted by artist Adam Cvijanovic, son of Serbian immigrants. It shows, among others, Sts. Francesca Cabrini, Kateri Tekakwitha, Venerable Pierre Toussaint, and Servant of God Dorothy Day surrounded by the people then and now of New York and first responders, under the protection of Our Lady and the angels. If you’re interested in seeing more visit: https://saintpatrickscathedral.org/mural.
Blessings,
