Tuesday
was All Saints Day.
I
wonder what do we think of when we talk about saints?
Someone
with a day named after them, like St Patrick?
Can
only dead people be saints?
In
the Apostle’s Creed, which we say each time we baptise, we say the following:
I
believe in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy catholic Church,
the
communion of saints,
the
forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and
the life everlasting. Amen.
And
what is the ‘communion of saints’ that we say we believe in?
The
communion of saints is about connection,
connection
with God: creator, redeemer and Spirit;
connection
with members of the congregation;
connection
with Christians across the world and throughout history;
connection
with the creation;
connection
through participation in sacraments;
connection
through participation in the activity of God in our everyday life.
And
the source of that connection is God who lives and moves through the Holy
Spirit.
The
communion of saints is the people of God across time and space, known and
nurtured through the gifts of God for participation in the activity of God in
the world.[ii]
The
Gospel reading set for All Saints Day this year is the Sermon on the Plain that
we also heard this morning:
blessed
are the poor, the hungry, the weeping and the excluded
Woe
to the rich, the well fed, the laughing and the popular.
Not
such a pleasant message.
Then
the hard part:
love
your enemies
do
good to those who hate you
bless
those who curse you
Turn
the other cheek
Give
away your shirt
‘do
to others as you would have them do to you.’
Wow!
Makes
one bride for 7 brothers look easy J
But
does this tell us anything about Saints?
I
wonder if Saints are people who live into God’s future now
A
future where the hungry are fed
The
lowly are lifted up
The
rich go away empty and
the
powerful are brought down
which
may sound familiar… Mary’s Song of Praise, from Luke chapter 1.
you
are part of the communion of saints
you
are known and nurtured by the Holy Spirit
for participation in the activity of
God in the world
We
take some time to reflect on what God is saying to us this morning.
