[Granville-Hough] 19 April 2009 - Stones

[Trustees and Executors for Granville W. Hough]

Our church is in the midst of a fund-raising 
campaign to improve its facilities. I prepared this story to encourage 
others to help. We can do great things if we keep the vision in view, 
and work some each day to bring it into reality.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STONES FOR OUR CATHEDRAL

When you visit Europe and have the privilege of walking through one of 
the great cathedrals, you can ask yourself: “What were the people like 
who built these wonderful edifices to the Glory of God?” “What church 
teachings inspired them to do it?” You can even do historical and 
genealogical studies to identify the individuals who did the work. What 
do you find? To the amazement of many, they were just like us, in fact, 
they were OUR ancestors.
We know that the Protestant Reformation came 31 Oct 1517 with Martin 
Luther, and that was just about the end of cathedral building. Before 
then, we were Catholics, some for 500 years, some for 1000 years, and 
some 1500 years. Genealogically speaking, we know that we each descend 
from just about every living person in Europe 1000 years ago who today 
has descendants. So we all have a Catholic heritage, and we all built 
cathedrals. (Our brothers and sisters of Asiatic heritage have similar 
traditions in other beliefs.)
When we look at the marvel of cathedrals, we consider the Catholic 
Church must have been rich indeed. Not so! Medieval life expectancy was 
short and brutal. The populations were small and afflicted with plague, 
pestilence, war, and poverty. Financial resources were scarce; yet OUR 
ancestors persevered for 100, 200, or 300 years, each making a 
contribution. They had dreams and visions of what could not be seen. An 
expanded apocryphal story may illustrate the point. Please remember we 
are not talking about imaginary people, but about OUR OWN ANCESTORS.
Nearing the end of his life, the old grandfather led three young 
grandsons to piles of stone in a field. He pointed to one pile and said: 
“These are the stones I moved from the quarry to the site of OUR 
cathedral. Now you must shape the stones and put them into place.” The 
grandsons grew up and one day found themselves working together on the 
stones in the field. A traveler came by and asked what they were doing. 
One said, “I’m breaking these big stones into smaller ones.” The second 
one said, “I’m making a living and feeding my family working on these 
stones.” The third said, “I’m building OUR great cathedral.” All three 
were speaking the truth, but only one remembered the vision.
What we are about in our church will not be done in a week, a month, or 
a year. As I place my small pile of stones in the field, I do hope it 
will not take 100 years for them to be helpful. May God guide us in our 
efforts!. Granville.