Sermon for Sunday, November 4, 2007Remember MeRev. Dr. Harvey C. Martz All Saints Day |
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Scripture: I Corinthians 15:50-58 50 What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." 55 "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. I want to commend a movie to you. Judy and I saw the film “Things We Lost In The Fire” this week and found it very inspiring. It is about a family where the father has been killed and it tells the story of how the father’s best friend who is a recovering addict, becomes a source for the healing of the grief of his friend’s family and how they are a source for his healing as well. It is about grief, loss, addiction, and hope and redemption. And Benicio Del Toro does a brilliant job and has one of the most interesting faces of any actor I have seen. There is a scene in the film toward the end where the family is at a meal. They have not talked much about their feelings. And a new person is at the meal who did not know the deceased father and husband. She does something very important, very helpful. She asks the kids and others at the table to talk about their loved one and friend. What was his favorite food? What did he like to do? There were several other questions like that. She is curious about him, and they all have been so wanting to talk about him that they eagerly carry on the conversation. It is a great example of how we can grieve in a healthy way, and it is the opposite of how we sometimes tiptoe around when there has been a death. We sometime avoid talking about the one who has died because it might be uncomfortable or painful when what is really needed is for people to say the person’s name and to remember and celebrate the gift of their life—to say that they were here and that they mattered and we are better for that. That is part of what we are doing on this All Saints Sunday every year when we lift up the names of persons we have lost, when we say their name out loud and give thanks for them and remember them. It is so important to remember. That is one of the reasons we have pictures of loved ones around us, persons who are no longer part of this life—to remember them and to celebrate them and to feel their presence in a different way. St Andrew member Bill Youmans reminded a couple of us in the hallway this week that when people were losing homes to the fires in California, what did they take with them? They usually took photographs—pictures to remind them of loved ones and friends and to keep those memories visibly alive. Isn’t that true in your house as well? It is in ours. We have pictures of family all around—both those who are still living and those who have gone on—to celebrate them and to remember them. When we remember them, we can feel them with us, we can imitate their good qualities, we can focus our lives more intently so we can use our time well each day we are alive. It is good to do what we are doing today, and it is good to think about how short and how precious life is. We have included some readings and some poetry in the bulletin insert because those can help us make good use of our time. I especially like the poem by Mary Oliver entitled “When Death Comes” because it helps me think about using my time wisely:
I hope you will use this and other resources as we remember these loved ones and friends today—and others who are not pictured or listed but you and I will list them and name them in our hearts. I hope you will use the scripture resource that St. Paul gives us in the reading from I Corinthians also—it is the longest reading in the Bible on resurrection and the hope of life after this life. In a moment we will name some names and see some photographs. It is good that we are doing this right before we celebrate communion because when we come to the table each time, we come with the memories in our hearts of those who have come to Christ’s table long before us over the past almost 2000 years. What we are celebrating today is the “communion of the saints”, the connection we have with those who have been here before us, and who are still part of our personal memory and our community memory. The line is from the Apostle’s Creed at the end: “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic/universal church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sin, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.” We will take a few seconds of silence as we prepare ourselves to remember, and in that time of silence you may offer prayers of thanksgiving and name the names of others who may not be pictured today but whose mental picture you always will carry and cherish in your heart. |
