40 DAYS AFTER DEATH in Woonsocket

THE 40 DAY GATHERING AFTER THE DEATH OF PETER VANGEL

 Although Roman Catholics have a mass celebrated a month after the death of a loved one, I do not think that it is the same as the tradition in the Christian Orthodox faith to have a gathering 40 days after the death of a Church member.

I  did some research and  learned that the tradition flows from the belief that the Soul must make a 40 day long ascent  up to the Gates of Heaven.This ascent marks the last time that the forces of evil, the Devils, those like Lucifer who have been banished to Hell and are always seeking souls to take to Hell, can battle for the soul of the dead person.
The Orthodox believe that the soul is in transition and its fate is uncertain for that time.

They believe that the soul is protected and helped by its Guardian Angel--that is an individual Angel that is appointed to guard each soul from birth to death and after death into eternity.The Guardian Angel pleas the case of the Soul. Sometimes the Arch Angel Michael appears with his flaming sword to fight  off the attacking Devils.

The soul must go through TWENTY terrible toll-gates during these forty days.  Each bitter tollgate records and recounts one particular sin or failing such as pride, envy, lust, anger, etc and the accounts of the recording Angel are brought forward. The Guardian Angel and sometimes the Saint that shares the person's name  and/or  birthday speak on behalf of the fearful trembling soul.
  
This idea of a series of toll gates is quite a dramatic and vivid one.   It is certainly true  as I learned in the year as a Fulbright Senior Fellow that I lived in Romania, which is an orthodox majority country, that people there have a  sense that the dead are still around  for the first  forty days after death,

To serve and help them through this trial, the Romanians bring food to the  grave site and leave it there. Sometimes in the winter they also bring cloaks and wrap the stone monument over the grave to show their desire to help the dead  keep  away the frigid air. They also light long lasting votive candles on the grave.
   
It is not that they are frightened of the dead.  No, they do not want the Dead to be frightened during this period of trial and transition. And of course, they pray for their beloved dead daily. 
Such elaborate and community habits do not seem to be exercised  in their entirety in Woonsocket today, but the 40 day gathering and meal is a reminder of that tradition.

The oasis of peace that is Oak Hill Cemetery cast its spell on this warm and dry day. A landmark that was created by  men and women of Woonsocket who were ardent Abolitionists and were prepared and fully expected to sacrifice their lives to secure the end of slavery in THE LAND OF THE FREE. They planned a burial place that would be like an old forest of strong Oak Trees. They marched and drilled in this space, and some even dug their own graves before they went off to battle in the Civil War. What spirits must inhabit those sacred woods!

On  Saturday we could still feel their benign presence  as we drove into the gates and began the ascent to the grave site. Once there, I met the priest who was presiding over the ceremony and who so  carefully lead us in prayer. Father Morar of Saint John the Baptist Romanian Orthodox Church set the tone of  reverence and also friendship.  He is blessed with a high intelligence and expansive personality; he engages people easily and creates an immediate sense of community,
Known for his superb craftsmanship in wood, he also brings a creative and artistic temperament to the spiritual guardianship that he personifies.

Speaking to him  reminded me of the many people I met in the year that I spent teaching as Senior Fulbright Fellow in Romania.  Father  Romar had  just returned from a visit to his homeland. It was a great  blast to my memory to be able to share a few reminiscences of that  beautiful country.

I was impressed by both his simplicity and his worldliness. He exuded a sense of tolerance and wide understanding. I felt that he  sees, as our Savior did, the sharing of food as one of the  key acts that bring about human  harmony,

He reminds me of the host that Jesus praises in one of his parables who sets a lavish table for his son's wedding banquet and the invited guests decline. He sends out his servants to the roadways to invite people from far and wide to join the feast that has been prepared.

That is the sense of inclusiveness that marked the grave side  40 Day event and it so matched the personality of the gracious educator Peter Vangel whose passing into his eternal reward we were celebrating. I imagine that his soul passed through the tollgates unimpeded. On that perfect July day I believe that he was  looking down at  those of us below who must still one day face that same treacherous ascent.  May we have the grace to follow  his  footsteps into eternity.