All Saint's Sunday November 1, 2020
Behold, the Saints of God
Today we celebrate All Saints’ Day, the same as the many Christians who have come before us. In the second century, the Church started remembering people who had died. It was a violent and dangerous time for the followers of Jesus. The government and the world did not approve of the influence that Christians were having in the world, so while most held firm in their faith, some did so at the cost of their own lives. These significant Christians were the first saint celebrated by the Church.In the 10th century, Roman
Catholic monks in Cluny, France spent a lot of time considering the thin place
between the living and the dead. During this time, the Church celebrated a
3-day arc, including All Hallow’s Eve, which attempts to find an explanation for
evil in the world, All Saint’s Day for celebrating recognized saints, and All
Soul’s Day, remembering everyone who has died in the faith. It was before this
that the Church had developed a theology of Purgatory, where the souls of those
who were not prepared to go to heaven waited for their time to come. So, it
makes sense that the first ritualized practices of All Soul’s Day were focused
on praying for those who had died in remembrance of their lives and witness,
but also that their souls might one day find rest in heaven.
Over the next 500 years, this practice was
subverted by the greed of some priests and bishops, who actually sold
indulgences, which were prayers and masses for the dead, as a way to raise
money for their churches. It was something that reform-minded theologians were
vehemently opposed to and spoke out against. It is no coincidence that Martin
Luther published and distributed his 95 Theses, ultimately posting a copy on
the door of the Wittenberg Church on October 31, 1517, the day before
traditional All Saint’s Day masses and remembrances.
With Reformation sweeping the Church in
the early 16th century, this new church had to figure out how to
keep the commemoration while abandoning the idea of Purgatory, since the doctrine had little foundation in scripture. All Saint’s Day celebrated on
November 1st became a time of commemoration and remembrance for
those who have died, and a way to reflect on how the lives of those who came
before us have shaped and encouraged us to live out our faith.
In the Roman Catholic tradition, it’s not
easy to become a Saint. Evidence is collected in an effort to convince Church
officials “that the person in question in fact lived a virtuous life, had
faith and had the support and help of God. The Church also looks at miracles
as evidence that God is working through that person.”[i] It takes between 10 and
hundreds of years for the Church to authenticate the sainthood of those
nominated. In the Roman Catholic Church, 55 persons have been elevated to
sainthood since 2013.
People in the non-Catholic traditions
often think of sainthood differently. We recognize many of the well-known
saints: Saint Francis of Assisi – 13th century monastic and founder
of the Franciscan order of monks; Saint Anthony – 17th century
preacher and teacher who is known as the patron saint of lost items and people;
Saint Christopher – 3rd-century martyr and patron saint of
travelers; Saint Patrick – 4th-century founder of the Church in
Ireland; and let’s not forget Saint Joan of Arc, Saint Theresa of Avila, Saint
Valentine, and Saint Nikolas.
A few years ago, Shawn and I made a trip
to Greece. I was relatively unfamiliar with Orthodox worship but intrigued at
the small icons that we found in churches, shops, and museums. I eventually
purchased an icon of Jesus, but there were so many more to choose from. Some of
them were of saints I mentioned earlier, but there were also people I never
thought of as saints, but exactly the people that I want to be like as I live
out my faith. Saints like Dorothy Day, an American Catholic who stood up for
the working poor… Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor killed by the Nazis for
preaching the gospel, and British writer C.S. Lewis, who began life as an
atheist, but became a Christian in adulthood, and penned some of the most
accessible and honest writings on the struggle that comes with a life of faith.
That’s why I love this day. All Saint’s
Day remembrances ask us to think about faithful people who have come before us…
people who lived out their faith, inspiring us to live out our faith more
authentically. So today, I remember Charlie, a retired man from my first
church. He was loud and joyful, a traditionalist in every sense of the word. In my first week as his pastor, he let me know that I had a limited amount of time to
prove that I was up to the job. But gradually, we become friends, and over the
next five years, I watch Charlie pour his whole life into loving his wife and family,
and opening a homeless shelter in our town. He didn’t envision it to be just
a place for people to sleep at night. This would be a place where people could
take a shower, or wash their clothes, or get help filling out applications for
jobs or connect with a dentist or doctor who might help attend to their
physical needs.
He became a real pest to many of the
businesses in town, gathering donations for beds and linens and kitchen
supplies to furnish a house that he persuaded the ministerial association to
buy. People were known to duck into a doorway when they saw him coming, because
they knew that they wouldn’t be able to say no to whatever he was going to ask
them to do.
When he died unexpectedly, we wondered if
all of his dreams would come true. But people took on his dream as their dream
and a new kind of ministry with the homeless came true. Charlie is proof that
saints come in all shapes and sizes, and we never know when we might be in
their presence. My guess is that you all have a Charlie somewhere in your life.
And this person taught you much more that you realized about what it means to
be a person of faith. This person was or is a Christian who you want to be like
someday. He or she is your saint.
The scripture readings for today can
confuse us because we think of blessings as something we earn for good – even
exemplary – behavior. But the Beatitudes are not about rewards. They are about
God’s acknowledgment of the sacrifices we are willing to make in order to
usher God’s Kingdom just one day closer. At the time, our actions might not
seem like much, or they might feel like we are crossing a wide chasm with no
net or bridge or rescue in sight. But we do them because someone else showed us
how and because we have been told, and then believed, that God’s grace extends
far beyond our wildest imagination.
In his book, Revival, Methodist
author Adam Hamilton speaks of grace as the embodiment of our faith.
It is an act of
kindness, an expression of selfless love that is completely undeserved and is
given without any expectation of repayment. We are never more like God than
when we are giving selflessly to others. Because God created us to live in this
way, we seldom feel more alive and joyful than when we are serving, blessing,
and helping someone else. That is charis.
This is grace.[ii]
Sainthood is only
possible if we fully embrace this amazing gift of grace. Grace changes us, it
molds and shapes us and re-creates us in the image of Christ.
When we read from
the book of Revelation, we must be careful not to see this as a prediction of the
end times. Instead, it is more like an impressionist painting, offering an
alternative life plan to the one offered by those who use power to their own
benefit. Biblical scholar John Holbert
says,
“John's Revelation is a great book of the promise of God to create
a world where all have a place, where hierarchies disappear, where all live
together in harmony and peace. Do not allow anyone to make this book into a
thing of scary fear, of partisan choice, of believing rightly lest you end in
fire. No! It is a book of hope, founded in love, and the gift of the lamb for
all of the people of God.”[iii]
The slain lamb is
the key to life for people of faith, not victory in the traditional sense of
the word. The key to life is service – service to God and
to others - service that may in fact lead to suffering and giving and dying.[iv]
And while John’s Revelation is multi-layered and interpreted in many different
ways, one thing we know for sure: God wins and evil loses. God will make “all
things new,” not “all new things.” The heaven described in this biblical
writing is the fulfillment of what God intended from the beginning of time – a
new Eden, a place of order, structure, and designed to be ruled by love.[v]
Each Sunday after the reading of scripture and the preaching of the
Word, we recite together the Nicene or Apostle’s Creed. In the last stanza, we
say that we believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic or universal church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness
of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.
The Holy Spirit binds us together as the church. The great wind which
hovered over the world at creation also brought new life to the people whom God
called on the day of Pentecost. The disciples and other followers of Jesus
gathered in Jerusalem after his death and resurrection and waited... they
didn't really know what for... but they waited. And on that day, they were all
bound together for a lifetime... for an eternity with our God.
You see, all those things go together. Without the witness of Jesus'
resurrection, we would not know the joy which we know today, that Jesus Christ
indeed was raised from the dead, and lives eternally with the Father. Saying
that we believe in the holy catholic or universal church means that we believe
that the Holy Spirit came to tear down the walls which separate us, not build
new or higher ones. And because there is life everlasting with our God, the
boundary between life and death becomes a thin place, as remember all who have
professed faith in Christ, living and dead. In this way, we are united with all
believers throughout time, a Christian community not bound by time or space, a
true communion of saints.
By putting all of these pieces together, we are able to expand our
understanding of who "the saints" are. Yes, the saints are all those
whom we name today, both aloud and in our hearts. They are those whom we have
named in years past, people who have impacted our lives and our faith in a
significant way. They are those who we did not know, but who lived and died
faithfully, loving the Lord, giving witness to someone along the way. But the
saints are also us... you and me, as we continue on our own faith journeys, and
attempt to witness to the love of Jesus Christ through the example of our own
lives.
This hymn encapsulates the power we have to be led by and to lead others as we live faithfully.
I Sing a Song of the Saints of God by Lesbia Scott (1929)
I sing a song of the saints of God,
patient and brave and true,
who toiled and fought and lived and died
for the Lord they loved and knew.
And one was a doctor, and one was a queen,
and one was a shepherdess on the green:
they were all of them saints of God, and I mean,
God helping, to be one too.
They loved their Lord so dear, so dear,
and God’s love made them strong;
and they followed the right, for Jesus’ sake,
the whole of their good lives long.
And one was a soldier, and one was a priest,
and one was slain by a fierce wild beast:
and there’s not any reason, no, not the least,
why I shouldn’t be one too.
On this All Saints’ Day, let us remember and give thanks for all who have lived, loved, and shown us the way toward making God’s new creation possible, now and in the world to come. And let us be those people, too. Amen.
(C) Deb Luther Teagan 11/1/2020
A PRAYER MEDITATION FOR ALL SAINTS DAY
We give you thanks, O God, for all the
saints who ever worshiped you
Whether in brush arbors or cathedrals,
Weathered wooden churches or crumbling cement meeting houses
Wherever your name was lifted and adored.
We give you thanks, O God, for hands
lifted in praise:
Manicured hands and hands stained with grease or soil,
Strong hands and those gnarled with age
Holy hands used as wave offerings across the land.
We thank you, God, for hardworking saints;
Whether hard-hatted or steel-booted,
Head ragged or aproned,
Blue-collared or three-piece-suited
They left their mark on the earth for you, for us, for our children to come.
We thank you, God, for the saints of our
lives, especially the ones we are missing today. Some of them we name out loud.
Some of them we name in our hearts and minds alone.
We remember……
John Barham, Heinz Zimmerman
Thank you, God, for the tremendous
sacrifices made by those who have gone before us.
Bless the memories of your saints, God.
May we learn how to walk wisely from their examples of faith, dedication,
worship, and love. Amen.
(https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/a-prayer-meditation-for-all-saints-day)
[ii]
Adam Hamilton, Revival, 2014, page 80.
[iii]
John Holbert, No, It’s Not
"Revelations," and It Is Not About That! http://www.patheos.com/Progressive-Christian/Reflections-on-Revelation-John-C-Holbert-10-24-2014.html#ixzz3Hp378v1H
[iv]
Ibid.
[v]
Ibid.
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