So then, with endurance, let’s also run the race that is laid out in front of us, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us. Let’s throw off any extra baggage, get rid of the sin that trips us up, and fix our eyes on Jesus, faith’s pioneer and perfecter. He endured the cross, ignoring the shame, for the sake of the joy that was laid out in front of him, and sat down at the right side of God’s throne. – Hebrews 12:1-2, CEB
Growing up in a rural United Methodist Church, I recall on All Saints Day we would conclude our worship service in the cemetery beside the church. Through the years, I’ve participated in churches with a variety of traditions to honor the faithful dead. We might place pictures of our deceased loved ones on the altar. We light candles and ring chimes as their names are read aloud. We celebrate the lives of the dead as we remember our hope in the promise of resurrection. It’s a very incarnational thing to do, connecting human life with eternal life, remembering that our salvation is not so individualized, but united with the lives of the communion of saints.
For this All Saints Day, I wanted to illustrate Charles Wesley’s beautiful hymn, Come, Let Us Join Our Friends Above. Rather than visually interpreting his lyrics, I wanted to instead illustrate my belief in the communion of saints as a very real connection of the invisible Church across time and space. The first panel features Richard Allen and Absalom Jones, the founders of the black church in America, setting the rhythm and pulse for the song. Next is Charles Wesley, the author of the song, as I imagine him coming up with the lyrics in private, which I lovingly hope involved singing to his cat. The third panel features Spanish Catholic mystics, Ignatius of Loyola and Teresa of Avila, contemporaries of Martin Luther who were finding vital religion in the very Catholic Church he challenged. Following is pictured William Apess, the first Native American ordained in Methodism, considered the most successful activist for Native civil rights before the Civil War. Next I wanted to honor and celebrate Bishop Young Jin Cho and Rev. Kiok Chang, both still living, who lead influential ministries emphasizing the strength and power of prayer together. Their calm and gentle spirits are juxtaposed with Martin Luther, the great Protestant Reformer, who loved music and did in fact play guitar.
The final three panels start with 20th century Catholic Bishop Oscar Romero, assassinated while celebrating Mass at his parish in San Salvador. Romero spoke boldly against the injustices of the military government AND their left-wing opponents for their murderous indifference to the poor left dead in the streets. Next we see Perpetua and Felicity, 3rd. century martyrs from Carthage in Africa. These young women (one pregnant and one nursing an infant) were imprisoned for their Christian faith and publicly slaughtered together at the Roman games. Perpetua’s journal of her imprisonment was the first Christian document written by a woman. The affection and protection between the two women has led them to be considered the patron saints of same-sex couples. My illustration of the pair is taken from an icon by Franciscan friar, Brother Robert Lenz.
The concluding panel shows John Wesley holding a mirror, inviting the readers to find themselves in the great song and story of the Christian faith. I did not want this comic to follow any linear logic, but to move back and forth through time and space, exploring the mystical connection we have with all who share connection to the Body of Christ.
Come, let us join our friends above
who have obtained the prize,
and on the eagle wings of love
to joys celestial rise.
Let saints on earth unite to sing
with those to glory gone,
for all the servants of our King
in earth and heaven are one.