Saints are glimpses of heaven. They give us a foretaste of what we will know in fullness in heaven. Søren Kierkegaard said, “God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.” Ordinary people who through their collaboration with God urge us along in our faith, show us the way to be faithful and steady us even as the times get tough. These are the roots of our faith. I hope you noticed as you walked through the Lobby, our roots of our tree now have the names of those we are remembering this morning. We are giving thanks to God as we remember their role in our lives. As we give thanks to God, I remind you of the gratitude challenge that we began last week. Many have accepted and begun giving thanks to God in the form of thank you notes to others. Cards have been sent and received. I have heard of those who lifted others’ spirits with the gratitude expressed. We are six days into the gratitude challenge and encourage you to stay strong! There are additional thank you notes in the lobby to aid you in your challenge!
And I certainly give thanks to God for those we are remembering this morning. Those who loved golf and those who loved cats. Those who gave everything to care for their families and those who remained committed to a beloved project, even until the end. Those who made our favorite meal and those who played our favorite game with us. Those who told great stories and those who took great naps in front of the game that they were watching.
This year, those we are remembering are in good company. Among those who have died this year, we remember Doris Roberts, from Everybody loves Raymond, a TV mother-in-law, if ever there was one. We remember Charmain Carr, Liesel from the Sound of Music, who for most of us will perpetually be featured as 16 going on 17 with dewy-eyed optimism. We remember Joe Alaskey, specifically as the voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck forever burned in our collective memory with cartoons and laughs. We remember Arnold Palmer, golf great and inspiration for the mixed drink – lemonade and iced tea, that is. We remember Nancy Reagan, former first lady and advocate around substance and drug abuse. We remember Elie Wiesel, who called generations to remember the autocracies of the concentration camps of World War II and live differently in light of them.
This year, 10 new saints were canonized. Two Joses, two Elizabeths, 5 others, and perhaps, most famously, Teresa of Calcutta. Mother Teresa known for her care for the poorest of poor, the sickest of the sick, the loneliest of the lonely. After her death in 1997, also known as a sufferer of dark nights of the soul, Teresa felt abandoned even by the God the she served. She reminds us that the life of the faithful is not always the happy-clappy celebration of the presence and poured out blessings of God, but is also the desolation of seeking the presence of God, even when it seems to not be found. Saint Teresa.
Saints in the Roman Catholic tradition refers to the canonization process for individuals who have achieved it. It was Martin Luther, who famously articulated the notation that all believers are part of the priesthood of all believers, saint in heaven and saints on earth. Luther and others began to understand that we needed to look around us and see others who were following God. Saints are not just those who God used for incredibly miraculous feats, but also those who are used by and respond to God in the ordinary events of keeping sanity, while feeding their children three meals each day, while providing for their families in an ever changing economic situation, while making prayerful decisions about a heart wrenching and complicated election categorized by vitriol and venom.
Saints are those who have been blessed by God, some traditions would articulate. After hearing the blessings that the Gospel of Luke articulates, we might not have raging desire to be blessed as saints of God. The gospel of Luke, unlike the parallel version in Matthew, offers blessings to those who are hungry and poor, weeping and hated, as well as woes to those who are full, laughing, and spoken well of. Jesus spoke to those who struggled in the toughest of times offering them blessings of the kingdom of heaven, being filled, laughing, and joy on that ultimate day. Jesus spoke to those in power and in wealth, reminding them that woe to those who have already received their reward, for there will be not reward in heaven. Jesus calls us beyond our comfort zones to live out the radical idea that just as ordinary people can become saints, we can be the vehicles through which the kingdom of God is known here in this place.
The saints we remember today were aunts and mothers, brothers and husbands, grandmothers and grandfathers, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law who were crucially part of the family, fathers and fathers-in-law, sisters and wives. They were the ones who ate thanksgiving with and enjoyed Christmas music with. They were the ones who made us laugh and urged us to be better. They modeled resolve and fight in the face of diseases and showed us kindness and compassion in our own struggles.
On All Saints’ Day, we remember that we are not just connected with those we remember in this place, but we are connected with those we remember across time and across place. Remember becomes less of an experience and more of a mindset. We may be able to remember and tell a story about Dot Weeks as founding part of our congregation, granddaughter of the Benns, whose home was the first meeting place for this congregation. But we may not be able to remember and tell a story about those who were remembered thirty years ago in this congregation or those remembered today in Connecticut or Calcutta, and yet they are all part of the saints with whom we will join our voices in our communion liturgy and with whom we pray to renew our communion. All Saints Sunday reminds us that our roots in our faith go far beyond that which we can touch and know.
In Christ, we have been given an inheritance, made to be better than we are. We put on the clothes of Christ and shine with glory. These who remember today and who we hold dear in our hearts are the roots upon which our lives stand. Remembering their lives steady us as go through our own turbulent times. Telling the stories of their joys and sadnesses, grand moments and mess-ups is what urges us on. May we lean on the roots that have allowed us to grow, giving thanks to God and those people with gratitude. We are indeed rooted in gratitude and growing in Christ.
This is the gospel of Lord Jesus Christ, thanks be to God, Amen.
New Testament Lesson: Ephesians 1:11-23
In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.
I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Gospel Lesson: Luke 6:20-31
Then Jesus looked up at his disciples and said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
“Blessed are you who are hungry now,
for you will be filled.
“Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.
“But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
“Woe to you who are full now,
for you will be hungry.
“Woe to you who are laughing now,
for you will mourn and weep.
“Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.
“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Meditations For Your Week
Sunday, November 6~ Saturday, November 12
Sunday: “Then he looked up at his disciples and said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” Luke 6:20. Scholars have argued for both physical poverty and spiritual poverty. Pray today for both: those who are physically poor and struggling as well as those who are spiritually poor and struggling. Write a note of gratitude to someone who came to mind as you prayed.
Monday: “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. ‘Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.” Luke 6:21. Pray for those who are carrying the burden of grief. Write a note of gratitude to someone who is modeling one way to carry the burden of grief.
Tuesday: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.” 1 Timothy 2:1-2. Pray today for all of our nation’s leaders. Write a note of gratitude to leader for whom you prayed.
Wednesday: “‘Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.” Luke 6:22-23. Pray for those persecuted around the globe. As you pray, write a note of gratitude to someone persecuted for their faith.
Thursday: “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Luke 6: 27-28. Hear the words of Jesus, pray for those who curse and abuse you. Write a note of gratitude to someone who gives you trouble.
Friday: “If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.” Luke 6: 29. Jesus challenges us with actions different than our instincts and different from the world around us. Write a note of gratitude today to someone who models this for you.
Saturday: “Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.” Luke 6: 30-31. Jesus’ most famous words are some of the most challenging. How is God calling you to live them out today? Write a note of gratitude to someone in prison.