We gather this weekend to remember the Saints. Throughout worship, you will hear words of remembrance and thanksgiving for the Saints from Central who died in the past year. At the same time, you are invited to remember the beloved saints from your own life, those who died recently and those who may have died years ago. This weekend is a tender time, a time to pause and reflect.
In the Gospel this week, we’ll hear Jesus preaching to the people of his day, saying, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” In the blessings that Jesus preached in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus announced a new way of understanding God’s blessings. On a hillside at the Sea of Galilee, a great crowd assembled to hear Jesus preach the Good News. The crowd heard that all are blessed, not just those who appear to be content or happy, but everyone, including the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, and the pure in heart.
Toward the end of the reading, Jesus says, “Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven.” Too often, we think of that reward as some future reality, an experience for which we must wait. But here’s the thing. Heaven is a current reality. Heaven is an ongoing and ever-present existence in which God, Father, Son, and Spirit, are at work in you and in the world. They say rejoice and be glad because no matter where you are today, they are with you. And that might just be the greatest blessing of all.
So, if this All Saints’ Day is tender for you, remember that you are not alone. We see you and we remember you and we remind you of God’s love and promise of resurrection when we will gather with all the Saints.
See you in church,
Pastor Stephanie