Fare Well, Fare Forward

Leaving is bittersweet. Bitter because presence is brief and absence is long. Bitter because all friendship, which lies at the heart of human flourishing, comes not to perfection in this life, but to memory. Bitter because intermingled with all love is sorrow, and for every reunion there is a re-parting.
But Faith makes leaving sweet. Faith that our God, the great Author, works in the future as He has in the past and does now in the present. Faith that in Christ is a unity between believers that transcends both time and space, an eternal bond of peace. Faith that seeks wisdom in humility, that strives for excellence in vocation, that goes forth boldly as a champion rejoicing to run his course. Faith that prays with Christ, "Thy will be done," and in whatever small way given to it from above, is a blessing, is a light in this world. Faith that Christ is working in our friends and working through our friends though they are far away.
And Hope makes leaving sweet. Hope that even as we share together in the Cross of our Lord, we shall one day share also in His Resurrection. Hope that the work of the Spirit in our hearts will bear the fruit of charity in this world no matter where we go. Hope that these words of our Lord shall be fulfilled for His Church: "And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you" (John 16:22). Hope that declares, with C.S. Lewis, "Christians never say goodbye!" Hope that absence and memory will give way to union in Christ.
But Love, most of all, makes leaving sweet. Sweet because, although absence is long, God is with us: the Spirit goes with our friends, making them perfect, redeeming their work, not letting their words fall to the ground. Sweet because, although friendship comes only to memory in this life, that memory may become a prayer through which we participate in God's work in our friends and through our friends. Sweet  because we are changed by our friendships; people are the voice of God and the work of the Spirit in our lives (both His work in our hearts and the work of charity given us to carry out). Love makes leaving sweet because, although all love is mingled with sorrow, there will come a day when sorrow will be overcome. Faith will become sight; Hope will be fulfilled; Love will remain. Our paths diverge now, but the Love of God binds us together even as it sends us apart. It sends us apart not as strangers, but as the people of God, a multitude of stories woven together in the life, death, and Resurrection of Christ.

My friends who are graduating, may the Spirit of charity and light go with you wherever you may go. May He bless you, keep you; may His face shine upon you all of your days. May He give you peace forever. And take courage! Perhaps we will see one another again on this earth; perhaps not (this is the bitter). But a day will come (a day of sweetness) when we shall all see one another again, and we shall behold His face. And in that day, we shall say to one another, "Welcome Home."