The Cloud of Witnesses that surrounds us, at Cambridge Church of the Nazarene

Hebrews 11: 1-3, 32-12:2

Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (and Esau), Joseph, Moses, and all the people of Israel who followed God through the desert into the land of promise and then those listed here. When the early Christians needed examples of faith they looked to those who had gone before them. When they sought examples of what it looked like to live as God was calling to them to live they looked to the faith other who had gone before them. These are their examples, examples of how faith is lived out in life, through trial, through error, through failure and through victory. They saw what it looked like to be faithful in the tough times, and examples of how rise up from the dust of weakness when you fall short of the person God calls you to be and yet still rising to be a great example of faith. The ups and down, the glory and the mud, in the lives of the heroes of faith they saw reflections of what it meant to be followers of Christ. The lives those who had gone before spoke to them, showed them the way, and shined the light of faith on the paths they were walking.

Tuesday, the 1^st of November is All Saints Day. On which we remember the light of faith which is shone to us from all those who have gone on before us. We honor the lives of those who have lived faithfully through the centuries, countless Christians, who have gone on before us; all those who passed their faith down from generation to generation. Throughout the centuries God has been faithful to the Church, continually rising up Christians to carry the faith from generation to generation. Great and grand examples who have lived through the centuries, Paul and Peter, Basil the Great,  Macrina, Perpetua, Chrysostom, Augustine, Catherine of Sienna, Bridget of Kildare, Martin Luther, Joh and Charles Wesley, Phineas F Bresee, even John N. Short. As well as saints who have faithfully, quietly, and beautifully blessed those within their sphrere of influence, mothers, fathers, Sunday School teachers, board members, faithful church members each seeking the light of Christ in all things and working to be the person God was calling them to be in the places they lived, at work, in their Churches among their friends and to their family; their light of faith shining brightly on just a few, but brightly shining none-the-less.

Each week when sit or stand or pray or worship in our sanctuary at Cambridge Nazarene, we stand in the light of the legacy of the faith of those who have gone on before us, quite literally. If you came into our sanctuary one of the first thing you may notice  is the the windows which surround us. What you may or may not notice at first is that each one bears the name of a Christian long gone from this world. These Christians were honored and remembered by their friends, their families and their loved ones when they donated in the money for these windows their memory, to complete this Church building. Each time I stand in their reflective light I am thankful for the generosity of those who gave and in awe of the faithful, Christ-filled lives each window represents.
Each window represents the life a member of this congregation, an example of the Christian life. And a Paul said, "what more can I say?” Here are the lives of those we cannot forget, whose faith shines light on us each week as we gather to worship.

John Short  - The two windows in the back of the Sanctuary facing Franking Street is a memorial to Rev. John Short, who served as pastor from 1899-1922, twenty two years. He burned the mortgage before he died. He was preaching in the pulpit one Sunday morning in April 1922 and he sat down in his chair, A doctor was in the congregation an immediately went to him. They helped him from the Church to his home next door at, 240 Franklin Street, where he expired a month later. Mrs. Gwendolyn Spooner many times went to help Mrs. Short take care of him. Our communion Set was given memory of Mrs Spooner, who passed in 1972.

Albert Fiske – The window in the back in the foyer. Albert was Superintendent of building the Church. The window was given by his wife- a signatory on the deed of the Church and the loan taken out to build it. Albert came to an early death from a fall while doing work here at the Church.

George Haddow – A Sunday school teacher for 17 years (listed as a “Rev” in the window)

Elizabeth Alley – The window in the front near the Piano - Played the piano for 20 years, was the mother of George Haddow’s wife.

Mr. and Mrs. Waldo Brigham – Both were active early members. They grandparents of Walter Burgess for whom the education wing is named.

Cynthia Dean – This window was given by her daughter. She was the first African American person brought into membership early in the Church’s history. Since we know these windows were purchased in the 20s, this shows us that our congregation has always been an integrated congregation.

Ida Davis – This window was given by her daughter. She was active early member of our congregation.

Isabella Ford – This window was given by her husband. He was apparently not very social (being described as being “no mixer”), but well thought of by others.

Abbie Tibbett –- She was an active early member of the church. She is remember as having “never missed a meeting”

George Shea – Mr. Shea was an active member of the church. His son who donated the window was a doctor.

Everett & Warren Hatch – They were Father and Son, they were “friends” of the Church. The window was given in their memory by their daughter and sister.

Harvey Hanson – The window along the stairwell leading to the balcony given by his mother. Harvey was a physically disabled Harvard graduate; remembered as being quite brilliant. He contributed to the building of the Church by spending hours cleaning used bricks to be used for the foundation. The house he and his mother lived in was willed to the Church.

Sunday school window – The window in the coatroom was donated by money raised by the Sunday School.

Edna Gardiner – There was once a round window behind the pulpit. It was given by her son, the president of the Central Trust Company. Edna donated the first $1,000 to the building fund. When we built the education wing it was donated to the Wolfboro, NH Church of the Nazarene.

Each week we worship, we pray, we draw closer to God, basking in the light shone through these faith journeys of these saints who have gone one before, who light our way and show us how a race well run looks.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by, so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, let us run with perseverance the race God has set before us.”