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Daniel 7:1-3, 15-18 and Psalm 149 • Ephesians 1:11-23 • Luke 6:20-31
You may have all seen this silly meme since I accidentally put it on our Two Saints Facebook page, when I only meant to put it on my own page … but then I couldn’t take it off because people liked it. It says: “My teacher told me not to worry about spelling because in the future there will be autocorrect. And for that I am eternally grapefruit.”
After focusing on All Hallows Eve last Sunday, today we look at the other two days of that Triduum – All Saints Day and All Souls. The apocalyptic Book of Daniel is from the 2nd century BCE and contains many provocative visions and dreams and miraculous rescues of the Israelites. In today’s reading Daniel dreams about four scary beasts coming up from the sea – and I’m reminded of scary monster Halloween costumes -- it’s good for us to occasionally laugh at what we find to be fearful, including death!
Driving home from the cathedral last week, I saw some anti-vaxx protesters along Blanshard Street. And one of the signs they set up on the median strip said that the vaccines had only been tested on six mice -- and it didn’t work – they all got Covid. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry or rage at such idiocy. Who knew that there might be people right here in our beloved city – people dumb enough to believe that! It’s not very Christian to make fun of dumb people … but when they are spreading such dangerous misinformation – laughter seems like the gentlest response. Plus, it usually reduces blood pressure rather than increase it, as anger can do. So, after an initial feeling of anger at such harmful stupidity, I enjoyed a good laugh and tried to feel confident that most people would surely not believe such trash. Perhaps it would even help some anti-vaxxers to see how inherently ridiculous such claims are.
All Saints Day has a variety of interpretations as to how to define all these saints. In our epistle today, we see one example, where Paul is praising the Ephesians for their faith and their “love toward all the saints” (v15) – in other words – their agape love for all the followers of Jesus. He goes on to say: “and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.” Then he prays for all of us followers of Jesus in such a beautiful way – praying that God may give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that ‘with the eyes of our hearts enlightened’ we may come to know the hope to which we are called, and the riches of God’s glorious inheritance “among the saints” … so I think that’s us! At the Clergy Day last week, the retired director of deacons from New Westminster gave us some great teaching about the diaconate, and he repeated that phrase he loves from this reading: “with the eyes of your heart enlightened”. Perhaps one good definition of saints is – people who see others with the ‘eyes of their hearts’ … or to see others with compassionate love. I have often failed at this myself, despite my good intentions. I suspect that saints are people who keep failing, and trying again, rather than those who think they’re already perfect.
And after All Saints Day, we had All Souls Day – when we remember the dead, especially those we loved and lost. As to the other ones, hopefully the scary pumpkins scared them away! Throughout human history there’s been a huge range of ideas, theories, doctrines and speculation about life after death. A recent depiction of this that I found helpful and heart-warming -- was from Michelle Good’s book called Five Little Indians. As one of the main characters dies, the author presents a few last pages (pp 256-60) from him, told in the first person. I guess this could be read as ‘hallucinations’ but to me these pages seemed to contain gems of hope and wisdom. I don’t want to give away too much, but let’s call him Joe, since none of the main characters are named Joe. Joe feels like he’s waking up the next morning ready to meet his friend for breakfast … but then he realizes that things feel different. Soon his mother, who’s been dead for years is sitting beside him, and although that scares him, she’s there to reassure him that he’s safe now from all his earthly struggles, especially all his ongoing trauma from being a residential school survivor. Joe feels he can see them zipping the body bag over him, but his mother keeps redirecting his focus towards many good things that he’s remembering about his life as different scenes flash by. He is “whizzing through time” experiencing painful things as well, including his mother’s inability to be strong when he returned to their home village. She asks for forgiveness for this, and Joe says “Yes, Mother, even though there is nothing to forgive.” On the fourth day after his death, he’s allowed to fully depart from his earthly ties, and he sees a line of drummers stand and sing a travelling song for him. It’s actually his funeral he is seeing; and he feels grateful and happy to see the love that people have for him. From there he turns and finds himself at the hearth in the longhouse – in a place of love and healing. There’s so much comfort and hope in these pages – an invitation to let go of our fears of death. So please consider reading this Canadian award winning 2020 book.
And last but not least, let’s have a brief look at today’s gospel – Luke’s version of the Beatitudes. The first five verses are similar to Matthew’s: Blessed are the poor, the hungry, those who weep and those who are persecuted – because each of these conditions will be reversed in God’s kingdom. But then, unique to Luke we have some ‘woes’ as well. "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.” And after that some of the classic teachings of Jesus: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. Turn the other cheek etc. … ending with the Golden Rule: Do to others as you would have them do to you.
I’m pretty sure that these are all things that help us become saints, or at least beloved souls who’ve done their best to tend to the wounds of the world. May we draw hope & comfort from the beloved saints & souls who’ve gone before us, Amen.