All Saints' Sunday

Blessed All Saints' Day!
All Saints’ Day is November 1st each year, but since the first doesn't always land on a Sunday, many churches celebrate All Saints' Sunday on the first Sunday of November. This year, we celebrate All Saints on November 3rd.
The word saint comes from the Latin word sanctus and refers to the holy — that is, “set apart for the service of God.” In some of St. Paul’s letters to the churches he founded, he called all the members “saints.” Later, Christians who distinguished themselves by their zeal for Christ, especially the martyrs, were honored after their death by being canonized as saints.

The word “saint” was placed before their Christian name. The pages of Christian history books are filled with the stories of these very special servants of God.

Several became the patron saints of countries. Ireland’s saint is St. Patrick, England’s is St. George and Scotland’s is St. Andrew.

While the United States has no particular saint, Christians here should appreciate all the faithful people who served Christ courageously and delivered the faith to us to follow. We should also remember that in baptism, God names us "set apart for the service of God" - we, too, are saints.

This Sunday, those present in worship will have the opportunity to light a candle in honor or remembrance of saints in their lives. There's something about the concrete action of lighting a candle and letting the light of its flame shine that touches people deep in their souls. Candle lighting is a wonderful ritual action for families to do together, especially in concert with conversation about those who have gone before us, and those who strengthen our faith now.

The Fourth Day of Christmas

Happy Fourth Day of Christmas!

Today is the Day of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs. The infant martyrs commemorated on this day were the children of Bethlehem, two years old and younger, who were killed by Herod, who worried that his reign was threatened by the birth of a new king. Augustine called these innocents "buds, killed by the frost of persecution the moment they showed themselves." Those linked to Jesus through their youth and innocence encounter the same hostility Jesus encounters later in his ministry. (From Sundays and Seasons Year C 2013, published by Augsburg Fortress)


If you want to read about the Holy Innocents, head to Matthew 2:16-18. 

As much as this story is a "downer" in the midst of Christmas, it serves as a reminder that Jesus was born into the real world, a world full of beauty and love, yes, but also full of danger and sin. Perhaps it can inspire us to offer blessing and care to the "Holy Innocents" of our times and places.

Happy Third Day of Christmas!

St. John the Evangelist and Theologian, Russian Icon, 18th C

Today is the feast day of St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist.

John, the son of Zebedee, was a fisherman and one of the Twelve disciples of Jesus. John, his brother James, and Peter were the three who witnessed the light of the transfiguration. John and James once made known their desire to hold positions of power in the kingdom of God. Jesus' response showed them that service to others was teh sign of God's reign in the world.

Tradition has attributed authorship of the gospel and three epistles bearing his name to the apostle John. John is a saint for Christmas through his proclamation that the Word became flesh and lived among us, that the light of God shines in the darkness, and that we are called to love one another as Christ has loved us.

Information taken from Sundays and Seasons Year C 2013, published by Augsburg Fortress

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Advent is the time when Christians prepare to greet Christ—who came as a babe in a manger, who comes into our lives each day, and who will come again at the end of time. Advent is the time when people of faith are most at odds with the culture. The church calls people to focus on getting ready to receive Christ—preparing hearts and lives to make room for Jesus, to live as he would have us live. It is a time of longing, not fulfillment. Quiet reflection, not celebration. The culture, however, is already in a time of festivity, unable or unwilling, to wait and contemplate and prepare for the real festival. It is not easy to observe Advent without being pulled prematurely into Christmas.
How does St. Nicholas fit into all of this? He is an Advent saint because his December 6th feast day always falls in early Advent (Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas between November 27 and December 3). However, Nicholas is a good Advent saint for more important reasons than the date of his special day. Whatever he did, and it is said that he did many kinds of amazing things, may not be as important as the way he did it. Nicholas became so popular because he was a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. His life clearly reflected the way each one of us is called to show God's love to others, especially those in need.
Celebrating St. Nicholas on his day in Advent brings a bit of fun and festivity into homes, churches, and schools. His small treats and surprises help keep the spirit of good St. Nicholas, especially when stories of his goodness and kind deeds are told and ways to express his care for those in need are sought. Saint Nicholas helps us remember Christmas is a feast of love, hope, kindness and generosity. Yes, Nicholas is a good Advent saint.

St. Brigid of Ireland

To be honest, I don't keep track of that many saints' festival days. I remember the feast day of St. Michael and All Angels on September 29th (because it's my birthday). And, like most Americans, I remember St. Valentine's and St. Patrick's Days, since they're pretty hard to miss. Today is one of the few saint's days that I remember without all the trappings of commerciality: February 1st is the feast day of St. Brigid of Ireland.

There are lots of great legends about her - a Christian in pagan Ireland in the 5th century, she founded abbeys and was known for her extreme generosity to the poor. One story tells of how she wove a cross out of rushes from the floor while sitting at the death bed of a pagan chieftan. When he asked what she was doing, she explained the cross and life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The chieftan then converted and was baptized before he died.

I wear a silver Brigid's cross most days- it was a gift from Grant while we honeymooned in Ireland. It reminds me not only of what Jesus has done for me and for the world, but also reminds me of my time and friends in Ireland, and that I need to be ready to explain my faith, even to unlikely people. Brigid's cross has sparked more than one conversation, when folks have commented on the "different-ness" of my necklace, which has given me opportunities to talk about Jesus when I would have least expected it.

Who could you share your faith with today?

Mary, the Mother of our Lord

I don't travel to Europe in mid August. You can never find an accomodation around August 15th.

Europeans travel during the month of August. For people who still practice the faith, there is a reason why they travel during the middle of the month.

August 15th is the day the Christian Church remembers Mary, the Mother our Lord.

I would like to share with you the words attributed to Mary from the Gospel according to Luke.

I will let the words speak for themselves.

Happy travels during these warm August days.

And may the world God created be a better place because of what God has done for Mary and for the whole human race.

Luke 1:46-55

Mary’s Song of Praise
46 And Mary* said,‘My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, 48for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

Julian of Norwich

Today is the feast day of Julian of Norwich. There's plenty we don't know about her, though tradition says she lived from about 1342-1416, in Norwich, England. She may have been a Benedictine nun, or an anchoress - a woman devoted to the solitary life, but anchored in the world, not cut off or separated from it. To learn more about her life and work, check out this site or this one.
One thing we do know about Julian, is that at about the age of 30, she reported having divine visions, which she later complied into a book: Sixteen Revelations of Divine Love, a classic of medieval mysticism.

The visions declared that love is the meaning of religious experience, provided by Christ who is love, for the purpose of love. (Compare that with the second lesson for this Sunday, 1 John 15:1-8).

One of Julian's prayers will be included in our Prayer 101 anthology. It's one of my favorite "cover prayers":

In you, Father all-mighty, we have our preservation and our bliss.

In you, Christ we have our restoring and our saving.

You are our mother, brother, and savior.

In you, our Lord the Holy Spirit, is marvelous and plenteous grace.

You are our clothing: for love you wrap us and embrace us.

You are our maker, our lover, our keeper.

Teach us to believe that by your grace all shall be well,

and all shall be well,

and all manner of things shall be well.

Amen

The icon above was written by Lu Bro.

In praise of faithful witness

Today the Christian church remembers Toyohiko Kagawa, renewer of society.

He was born in Kobe, Japan in 1888. Orphaned early, he was disowned by his remaining extended family when he became a Christian.* Kagawa spoke, wrote, and worked at great lengths on ways to imploy Christian principles in the ordering of society. His vocation to help the poor led him to live among them. He established schools, hospitals, and churches. He also worked for peace and established the Anti-War League. He was arrested for his efforts to reconcile Japan and China after the Japanese attacked and invaded China in 1937.

In celebration of his witness, recognize those people at Christ the King (and in your community of faith) who work on behalf of the poor and oppressed, and who, through their work, reveal the peace of Christ that is a gift of the resurrection.

*I have known a few Japanese nationals that have converted to Christianity. They were rejected by their family and friends and paid a heavy price for confessing that Jesus is "Savior and Lord."

Provoking Thought

I have a wonderful, creative calendar posted on our office wall. I get one every year from Ministry of the Arts. The original art is always beautiful. Each day has a quote, thought or action to take. Last Wednesday the calendar said, "Take a risk on behalf of love." Thursday was, "Behold the exquisite." Friday: "Collaboration vs. competition." Saturday: "Explore the cosmos; Google 'Hubble,' click 'Gallery.'"

This makes me glad.

And today's quote is from St. Thomas Aquinas, since today is his feast day. And here's his quote:

"The things we love tell us what we are."

What do you think? Agree? Disagree? What do the things you love say about who you are? Leave your comments below!