At the Tomb of the Unknown Catholic Saints

By M.T. Mitchell

A particularly special feast day is the Solemnity of All Saints.

Do you know what the link is between this solemnity and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?

As we shall see, the veneration of these saints is very much akin to the honor given to the tombs of the unknown soldiers found in many countries of the world.

We Catholics love our saints, and we love to celebrate holiness. But could we also admit that perhaps we focus a little too much on the saints with amazing lives and stories, and forget about some of the less miraculous saints?

When we read the Bible passages for this feast, they don’t seem to point out anything spectacular or miraculous about the saints. Rather, the readings present a very ordinary form of sainthood.

The readings for the feast day tell us a few things about what it means to be a saint:

First Reading: A Saint is a person who is in heaven before the Throne of God.

Psalm: A Saint desires to see God.

Second Reading: A Saint is a child of God.

Gospel: A Saint is someone who lives the Beatitudes.

Here is an important takeaway: on the day the Church talks about what it means to be a saint, she does not share with us Bible passages about terrible martyrdoms, harsh penances, or miraculous wonders.

Instead, she tells us that to become a saint is a simpler process. We must long for God’s face and practice the Beatitudes. In doing so, we will be in heaven as children of God.

And so, why are we thinking about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier? Let’s glance over the first reading again. It is a passage from one of the last pages of Scripture: the Book of Revelation.

As St. John (the author of the book) has a glimpse of heaven, he sees a multitude of saints, men and women who are praising and glorifying God.

Our first clue is found in the countless multitude. The saints that the Catholic Church has recognized are far from a “countless multitude”. In fact, the number is somewhere around 10,000-ish. And so, there must be many more hidden saints who have made their way to heaven without being officially recognized.

Truly, anyone who is in heaven is a saint. How did this countless multitude get there? The Gospel gives us a hint: the Beatitudes.

To become a saint is to live the Beatitudes. And this is another clue as to our link to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

A lot of people are quietly living the Beatitudes in their lives. A lot of people who the world will never know or recognize are quietly living lives of real holiness and sainthood. Thus, there is potential for a “countless multitude” of saints.

Becoming a saint is possible for everyone. To become a saint, you do not need to do any of these things:

· Be a monk.

· Be a religious nun.

· Be a martyr or missionary in a foreign land.

· Perform miracles.

· Spend nights in ceaseless prayer with no distractions.

Here are true examples of sainthood:

· The mother with young children who wishes she could spend more time with the things of God, but who lovingly pours herself out for her husband and children.

· The elderly person who cares for their long-ailing spouse without complaints and with a heart full of love.

· The student who dedicates themselves to their studies with the goal of becoming the best person they can be to help the world.

· A tired father who must go to work for his family and does so quietly and lovingly as another “St. Joseph”.

Sainthood, while acknowledging the wild and crazy stories about some of our beloved saints, should look mostly very domestic and very close to home.

And here is the kicker: we all have met saints.

How?

On the feast of All Saints, we celebrate and honor those saints who don’t have a name, just as we honor those soldiers who don’t have a name.

These saints don’t have a name because they lived quiet and hidden lives.

This “countless multitude” is possibly our grandmothers and grandfathers, friends and acquaintances who have passed on and who in life were simple and humble and loved their Catholic faith.

Do you have someone in your life who has passed on to their eternal reward that you know in your heart is a saint?

That unnamed person is who you are to honor and celebrate on this feast day!

Hopefully, if we all embrace our calling to be Christians in the world who live out the Beatitudes, when we pass on, there will be people remembering us on the Solemnity of All Saints!