St. Paul’s United Church
Sunday, November 2,
2008
For all the Saints, and Sinners Too! – Rev. David Mundy
Revelation 7:9-17 Matthew
5:1-12
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Last year at this time I was attending a seminar on
what is called Celtic Christianity. For those of you who don’t know the phrase,
Celtic Christianity was the expression of our faith which came to life in
Ireland and Scotland during the Dark Ages. The leader was noted writer Philip Newell, who
lives in Scotland but grew up in Oshawa.
Oddly, the seminar didn’t take place on the Emerald
Isle or the Oulde Sod but in the high desert of the
state of New Mexico. The conference centre is called Ghost Ranch and was once a
working cattle operation. The scenery is radically different from what we know
in most of Canada with rugged rock formations formed by water millions of years
ago, yet which are now dry as dust.
I was the only Canadian amongst the participants and they
must have thought I was insane. The others were from California and Texas and
New Mexico and found the temperatures in the high sixties Fahrenheit a little
cool. But thanks to the low humidity the Crazy Canuck found this weather warm
enough for shorts and a tee-shirt, especially for a hike.
It wasn’t just the terrain and the climate that
differed from ours. There was a strange celebration which coincided with our Hallowe’en called, in Spanish, Dia
de los Muertos, or in English, Day of
the Dead. In this Mexican tradition November 1st – All
Saints Day – is a time to remember infants and children who have died. November
2nd – All Souls Day – honours adult loved
ones who have passed from this life to the next.
The library of the conference centre, of all places,
had what appeared to be a garish and macabre display with skulls and other
creepy images. I found it jarring but discovered that far from being
disrespectful, these images are for the celebration of the lives of those who
have gone before us. Along with the brightly coloured
displays families gather for a meal of remembrance and gratitude for their
loved ones who are now in God’s presence. Lots of families actually pack a
picnic and take it to the cemetery where loved ones are buried.
What I saw in New Mexico was a strange intersection of
traditions because it was the Celtic Christians who adapted ancient pagan ways
for the three days we know as All Hallows Eve (Hallowe’en)
and All Saints Day and All Souls Day.
Somehow they made it into Mexican culture as a way to remember and honour the dead.
Other cultures honour those
who have passed from this life to the next in special ways. There is a painting
by Haitian artist Gerard Valcin called Visit to
the Departed which depicts a crowd in a cemetery, lighting candles and
saying prayers for the departed.
In Protestant churches we haven’t acknowledged these
days the way the Roman Catholic church does but there
are scripture readings for this occasion that we heard a few moments ago.
In the last book of the bible called the Revelation of
John we are given an interesting picture of the heavenly host which is made up
not only of the angels and fantastic creatures described in the Revelation but
regular folk from every ethnic group and race and language that had ever
existed.
The number used here in chapter seven is twelve times
twelve thousands or 144 thousand which as you may know, one religious sect
takes literally. Rather than being taken literally it represents the vast group
of people who have been faithful, loving, giving Christians through the ages.
Last Sunday many of you were thrilled by the anthems
sung by our choirs. Imagine the heavenly choir multiplied thousands of times
over by those who are now always able to sing in tune and to sing parts as
well! The image here is not of spiritual superstars singled out for their
saintly and otherworldly example. Instead these are the everyday Joes and Jills who quietly live out their faith in this life and are
rewarded in the next.
The other passage we heard offers us the luminous words
of Jesus from what is called the Sermon on the Mount and specifically the
Beatitudes or Blessings. Jesus does not say “blessed are the powerful, the wealthy, the
talented.” Instead this peasant from Galilee stands on a hillside with other
peasants and assures them that God loves those who are humble,
and faithful in tough times, and even the meek. Don’t you wonder if some of
them were saying “could you run that past me again . . . ,” hardly able
to comprehend the notion that the nobodies of this world could actually be
God’s Somebodies.
What do you think about a day of recognition for those
who are “garden variety” rather than “gourmet” saints, those who have simply
lived the best lives they can in the midst of real-life circumstances? Can we
have our own version of “dia de los muertos?”
A friend mentioned the other day that it has been
argued that there have been perhaps two hundred people through the centuries
who have truly changed the course of history, Jesus among them. Some of them
have been profoundly good people and some of them such as Hitler, have been
profoundly bad. That’s an interesting idea and perhaps it’s true.
It also means that there have been millions of people
who have influenced a small circle around them in ways that will never be
recorded in history books yet have definitely made the world a
better and more hopeful places.
One of the privileges of ministry is spending time in
conversation with families in preparation for the funeral of their loved one. I
always encourage as many people as possible to be part of these gatherings, so
adult children and in-laws and grandchildren and cousins will show up. People
are often initially a little shy about sharing their thoughts and memories but
once the ice is broken there can be a veritable flood of stories and
observations.
I have watched as family members cry and then laugh,
and then laugh and cry at the same time as they remember what has been
meaningful about the person who is no longer physically present but still very
much alive in their hearts and minds.
Rarely do they pretend that the person who has died is perfect, and some
of the laughter is at the imperfections. But so often there is a deep sense of
gratitude for what they have been given, often in very simple ways.
In ancient times when the Christian church was still a
movement rather than an institution in the city of Rome, the faithful would
gather in the catacombs, the underground cemeteries of the city, to worship in
safety. They would paint pictures on the walls of their loved ones as if they
were still alive, and it was part of their worship to pray for the departed.
They also believed that those who had died in the faith prayed for them and
supported them. Would you agree that
when family members and friends speak to me of their deceased loved ones they
are painting their own portraits of their garden variety saints?
It is important to remember those who have left this
life yet still influence us in memory and in eternity. When you do your own
inventory of spiritually influential people, you may discover that there are
family members and Sunday School teachers and neighbours and co-workers. Physically they may seem like
unlikely candidates to be the base of our human pyramid and yet we have climbed
up on their spiritual shoulders and our view of life and of Christ is better
because of them.
Some of the finest Christians I have ever met are in
this congregation, people who are living the Good News of Jesus Christ in quiet
and effective ways. Sometimes life has not been easy for them and they are
“poor in spirit” as the beatitudes suggest, but they continue to be a blessing
to others through their compassion and generosity.
It’s important to remember, but perhaps a greater challenge
is asking ourselves whether we are living faithfully, graciously, honesty so
that we will be a positive influence on others. Will the day come when others
name us as important influences on their Christian faith?
Of course there is no saint training camp somewhere
where we can be whipped into spiritual shape along the lines of pro sports
camps: “drop to your knees and give my five prayers and ten acts of
kindness!” Without a doubt, though, life is it’s own training camp during which we are presented
with choices and opportunities in every day which will shape us and in turn
influence others.
There is a passage in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians
that I come across from time to time that always gives me
“cause to pause.” Under the heading Rules for the New Life we find:
Put away from you all
bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all
malice and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God
in Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4
A couple of weeks ago the coach of the Toronto Raptors
Sam Mitchell told reporters that he had given up profanity – no more cussin’ and swearin’ – because he
wants to be an example of self-improvement to his players. He admitted that he
has a couple of guys on the roster who will put his
resolve to the test but he had already managed three fairly successful months.
It is probably a sign of the times that lots of people made fun of his
resolution. I don’t think we will be seeing a halo around Mitchell’s head
anytime soon but we can admire his willingness to be so open about his
intention.
Of course it isn’t just what comes out of our mouths
that matters. It is also what is within us, as Jesus repeats again and again in
the Sermon on the Mount. What if we all began the day with a simple prayer to
be the best person Christ can help us to be, in thought, word, and deed?
So today we will remember our saints, those who have
been our companions on the spiritual journey. We can choose to live as
faithfully as possible each and every day, as mundane or exciting as they may
be.
I’ll close with a prayer called An Invocation to the
Saints:
Almighty God, you have surrounded us
with a great cloud of witnesses:
Grant that we, encouraged by the good
example of these your servants,
may persevere in running the race that
is set before us,
until at last, with all your
saints attain to your eternal joy,
Through Jesus Christ, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith,
who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Amen.