By Jenny Koch
Connecting Faith and Life
As we enter into the month of November, dedicated to praying for the souls in purgatory, I wanted to offer a special tribute to a friend who recently passed. Sam Tenbarge was perhaps one of the most faith-filled persons I have ever met. We first met when I was teaching at Reitz Memorial High School, and we connected immediately, talking about sports.
As I continued to learn more about his job helping others with Medicare, I was privileged to see his passion for spreading his faith. He would help me reach others by telling those around him about my ministry. He was always looking and always being the hands and feet of Christ, bringing others back to the sacraments and helping others learn to pray. His energy at football games and in the crowds was contagious. He is dearly missed by so many.
I know from personal experience that grief sometimes causes you to wrestle with the idea of purgatory. It is one of those terms — like the trinity — that is not specifically mentioned in the Bible. The idea of purgatory, however, comes from Maccabees 12:45 — “He made atonement for the dead, so that they might be delivered from their sin.” We also know that John’s vision of heaven — “Nothing unclean will enter it.” Revelations 21:27 has guided centuries of theology on the topic. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that purgatory is a “purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.”
Some call purgatory “heaven’s doormat.” It helps knock the dust off so that we are pure when we enter heaven. Father Mike Schmitz calls purgatory “the process by which we learn how to love God as we should.” He reminds us that any suffering we might experience in this process causes us to become holy. St. Augustine wrote in “The City of God” that “temporary punishments are suffered by some in this life only, by others after death, by others both now and then; but all of them before that last and strictest judgment.” His comments help us rest in this mystery of suffering and purification; it is in God’s hands.
As we journey together on our own earthly pilgrimages, remembering to pray for those who have gone before us, I offer up one of Sam’s rhymes. In this short piece, he sums up well the path we should all be following. Sam cheered on countless friends, family members, co-workers and athletes during his time with us. Let’s continue to pray for him and all of those we miss so dearly this month. “Eternal rest give to him, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.”
“In the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirt.
I wanna talk about Christ and I want you all to hear it.
I’m Catholic and proud, I say it loud. I’ll talk about Christ with anybody in this crowd.
Cause I was born and I was raised in the Catholic Church.
You wanna know where Christ is? You don’t need to search.
He’s in the Eucharist and he is in our hearts.
But you gotta stay close. Yes, that’s your part.
You gotta be like Jesus in every way because you want to be with Him in heaven someday
Because heaven is something we all can afford.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
I love serving Him. I wanna be an Apostle.
Cause what he did for us was so colossal.
The dude was crucified. He was sacrificed.
He’s the host with the most named Jesus Christ.
He is my savior and he is my boss, and I hope you're getting my point.
A cross.
Amen.”