We are celebrating All Saints’ Day today. Of the seven Principal Feasts in our calendar, it is the only one that the Prayer Book allows us to transfer from its appointed day—November 1—to the following Sunday.
Reading from Holy Women, Holy Men, our book for the calendar of saints: The Church is “the communion of saints”, that is, a people made holy through their mutual participation in the mystery of Christ. This communion exists through history, continues in the present, and endures beyond the grave and gate of death into heaven, for God is not a God of the dead but of the living, and those still on their earthly pilgrimage continue to have fellowship with those whose work is done. The pilgrim Church and the Church at rest join in watching and praying for that great day when Christ shall come again to change and make perfect our common humanity in the image of Christ’s risen glory.
The Church, us, is the communion of saints. We are saints. Made holy, by God, through our mutual participation in the mystery of Christ. All the way back to the Old Testament, although sainthood would have been described a bit differently, the faithful, the saints were all those who are in relationship with God. God makes God’s people saints.
For another different, but complementary definition of sainthood, I want to share a story. This story has circulated around the church for a while. You’ve either heard a hundred times or maybe none. In any case, it bears repeating.
It takes place in a church like ours, where we are surrounded every time we gather for worship by saints depicted in stained glass windows. The Rector calls children forward to talk about saints and she asks them: Who are the saints? She probably hopes they will say: “We are!” or, “All of us in the church are the saints.” Those are good answers. But one child says: “Saints are people the light shines through.” Saints are people the light… shines… through… Saints are people God’s light shines through.
Last night at the All Souls’ Day service I talked about the faithful departed being part of the glorious company of the saints in light. Today I’m talking about the faithful living. The faithful alive are part of the glorious company of saints whom “the light shines through.”
We are saints by virtue of our baptism and our participation in the fellowship and communion of the church. But to live more saintly… If we want to live better as saints, it seems to me it’s not about developing more heroic spirituality or faith; it’s about letting the light, God’s light shine through. It’s not about how we can become stronger or more heroic; it’s about how we can become better at letting God’s light shine through.
So to carry this metaphor a bit further, it seems to me we need to do two basic things if we are to live as saints, as people who let God’s light shine through us into the world, into the lives of others. If we are to be people who transmit and share God’s light with other people, two things need to happen.
First, we need to stand in the light. For the light to shine through us, it needs to shine on us. We need to stand near the light. And second, we need to be transparent.
So there are all sorts of ways to stand in the light of God.
- We can study and learn from these saints around us in our windows. They shine God’s light on us. We can learn from and seek inspiration from their stories and their example.
- Or you can stand next to, spend time with other living saints in your lives. You know who they are. Maybe some are here in this church today. Stand next to the people who shine with God’s light for you.
- Participate in the Body of Christ. Christ’s light shines here. In the fellowship and sacraments of the church.
- Read the Bible. The light of God shines brightly from the words of Scripture.
- Stay close to God and close to God’s people. Stand near the light of God.
And how do we be transparent, so that the light of God that shines on us may shine through us to bring God’s light to others?
- Sin is what darkens us, makes us opaque. Confession and reconciliation are the antidote to sin, the process by which the dark, opaque places within us become transparent windows through which God’s light may shine. Confess your sins and seek reconciliation.
- And pray. Prayer in general, I think, creates transparency. Maybe this is the best reason to pray. All sorts of prayer—intercession, thanksgiving, adoration. Whenever we pray, we open ourselves to God. We open up patches of transparency where God can get into us and shine through us. When we pray, we become transparent
Saints are people the light shines through. So stay near the light and be transparent, so that God’s light may shine through you and into the world.
