All Saints (for Pensioners Praise)

Preached at Christ church, Billericay  

Prayer

Almighty God, We give thanks for all your saints, who have shone with your light in every age. As we worship, kindle in us the same faith and love, that we may follow in their steps and glorify your name. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

History

In the 4th century, there began to be feast days to remember all the Christian martyrs. The feast days were either 13th May, or the Sunday after Pentecost. By the 7th century, the feast day included all the saints, not just the martyrs. 

Some say that on November 1st 731 Pope Gregory dedicated an oratory in Old St. Peter's Basilica to the relics of the holy apostles and of all saints, martyrs and confessors, of all the just, made perfect, who are at rest throughout the world. But there is also evidence that he may have been doing other things that day.

Others believe that the date was chosen because it is the festival of Samhain, the Celtic festival of the dead, and also the festival of the end of harvest and the start of winter.

It was not until 800, that we have records from Gaelic Ireland and Anglo-Saxon Northumbria holding All Saints' Day on the 1st November. By the 13th Century, the optional date of 13th May had disappeared.

Hebrew’s Saints

In our reading from the letter to the Hebrews, the author, whoever that was, talks about a great cloud of witnesses. If we look back at the previous chapter, he has listed them. He starts with “By faith Abel bought a better offering than Cain.” Then many of the heroes of the scriptures are introduced, starting with the words “By faith …”. The writer, in each case, outlines something of their lives – some small (or huge) action, that demonstrates their faith. In verse 13, part of the way through the passage, the writer says:

13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.

These are the people who make up the great cloud of witnesses.

New Testament Saints

To us, if we look back in a similar way, our great cloud of witnesses, might include the disciples, the apostle Paul, Barnabas, Luke, and many of the other Christians mentioned in the New Testament. Each of them could have their faithful actions listed.

• By faith, Andrew brought his brother to Jesus.
• By faith, Peter and John spread the word of God and healed people, despite the threats and the beatings given them by the religious authorities.
• By faith Ananias, went to straight Street and laid his hands on Saul of Tarsus.
• By faith, Paul continued his journeys to reach the gentiles, knowing how much he would suffer for the Lord Jesus.
• By faith, Barnabas sold a field to support the work of the apostles.
• By faith, Stephen spoke the message the Holy Spirit gave him. 

I could go on, and on. There are an almost endless list of people that could be mentioned in the New Testament alone. It is also true that:

13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. 

The promise that these people were looking forward to was the return of Jesus, to bring the current age to an end.

More Recent Saints

Of course, 2000 years later, there are lots of other saints we could look at. I wonder who you think of, if I ask who is your favourite saint?
…

The Catholic Church has a very specific, detailed process for declaring someone a saint. Each stage is carefully processed and agreed by a number of people. The stages are:

• Servant of God
• Venerable
• Blessed
• Saint

and none of the stages can start until a person has been dead for five years. The Pope can excuse this waiting period, which he did with Saints Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II. Here are a couple of the more obscure ones :
 

1. St. Casimir of Poland (1458–1484)
- Known for: His deep piety, chastity, and commitment to peace.
- Legacy: A royal prince who refused to lead a war he believed was unjust, choosing instead a life of prayer and service. He is the patron saint of bachelors and Poland. 

2. St. Lidwina of Schiedam (1380–1433)
- Known for: Enduring a lifetime of suffering after a skating accident left her paralysed.
- Legacy: She offered her pain for the conversion of sinners and became a mystic. She is considered a patron saint of ice skaters and the chronically ill. 

These then, among many many others, are the people that the Catholic Church officially recognises. Jesus may recognise many, many more. In our own time there are also many who should be in the great cloud of witnesses. I’m going to read 3 short passages for you.
 

1. – Story and Martyrdom of Frith. P 151

Frith was a young man famed for learning, and was the first in England who wrote against the corporeal presence in the sacrament. In May 1533 he was charged with not believing in purgatory and transubstantiation. He gave the reasons that determined him to look on neither of these as articles of faith. The bishops seemed unwilling to proceed, but Stokesler, the accuser, delivered him to the secular power, at the same time desiring that his punishment might be moderated: a piece of hypocrisy which deceived no one. Frith, with a fellow-martyr named Hewitt, was brought to the stake at Smithfield on July 4th 1533. On arriving there, he expressed great joy and even embraced the faggots (in the 16th century this meant bundles of sticks, tied together). A priest named Cook, who stood by, told the people not to pray for them more than they would for a dog. At this, Frith smiled, and said, "God forgive you." The fire was then kindled, and the martyrs burned to ashes.

2. – Stolyarov behind the truck. PP 200, 203

Stolyarov was released early from the disciplinary barracks, but on the next Saturday announced that he could not work on Sunday due to his convictions. A harsher punishment was required. The guards tied a rope around Stolyarov and attached it to the truck. The driver drove slowly, but still Stolyarov was dragged through the snow. When the driver a year later questioned Stolyarov about his feelings during the drive, Stolyarov answered, “I saw the blue sky. And think, brother, of what I saw there: Jesus Christ, seated at the right hand of the Father. I became filled with such joy and bliss that I couldn't feel that I was being dragged behind the truck! I did not feel the snow creeping into my jacket and trousers. I had the sense of being carried on the wings of angels and of Christ watching over me to see that nothing happened to me. I had never previously encountered such a state of ecstasy! I was so grateful to all those who had tried to hurt me in the name of Christ! After all, they jeer at me for his names' sake! Stolyarov forgave the guards, saying, “We have to have sympathy for them. They carry out the will of the enemy of every human soul. They are much more unfortunate than we are.”

What does it take to be a Saint?

So, what does it take to be a saint? We have already had the answer. We become saints by faith. We have heard a couple of remarkable stories of those who stood up for their faith. It is, of course, only the remarkable stories that get written down. Faith is the only requirement, if we have the same sort of faith as we have seen in our great cloud of witnesses, then, in due time, we too will be in that cloud, and stories of faith may be told about us and our lives. 
So, let us fix our eyes on Jesus, and remember what the writer to the Hebrews said about the great cloud of witnesses, because it applies to those in the two stories, and to us:

13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.

Amen.