FROM THE MANSE

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The 1st of November is All Souls or All Saints day, when the church celebrates those who have gone before.

Of course most people in our secular society take more notice of Halloween – or All Hallows Eve to give the eve its proper title.

This of late has been somewhat high jacked with the import of tricking and treating.  I did read,  however, that in the USA householders opt into this by placing a pumpkin on their doorstep, and in fact the offer is to give a trick or treat to those calling, not that if you don’t give a treat they will play a trick on you. In some parts of the North this was known as ‘Mischief Night’. But recently the antics of those intent on anti-social behaviour have meant that for many, they dread the 31st October.

St Lawrence’s have invited, via Churches Together, families to join in an alternative for All Souls Eve, with the emphasis on fun and those who inspire us – it is called Heroes and Hotdogs, and I hope that even if you can’t get along you will support them with your prayers.

This theme of celebrating those who came before, is a very valid one, but we do have a tendency to think of saints as being somewhat removed from daily living. The words of the 17th century Nun's prayer springs to mind:

“Keep me reasonably sweet; I do not want to be a Saint - some of them are so hard to live with!”

However we need to bear in mind that we are all called to be saints. St Paul, writing to the church at Ephesus, starts his letter with these words: ‘To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Jesus Christ’, and to the Colossians he says: ‘to the holy and faithful brothers in Christ’

So do YOU consider yourself to be a saint? Or even holy?

One of the definitions of a saint that I really like is that it is an ordinary person who, like a stained glass window, lets God’s light shine through them. In other words they use their individual God- given gifts for the glory of God. I’m sure that we can all think of people who, in our faith journey, have inspired and encouraged us in this way, although they may be surprised if we named them a saint!

It can also be a useful exercise to look at ourselves in the mirror and remind ourselves that we, with all our faults and imperfections are called to be saints. God can use every one of us. In fact if you look at the lives of some of the ‘traditional’ saints like St. Francis it is interesting to note that they didn’t all start off  their lives as ‘saintly’.

Being a Saint is not that difficult – we are called to be the people that God would have us be, having life in all its fullness, and letting God’s light shine into the lives of others. We can’t achieve that on our own, we can only get some way there if we allow God to work within our lives, and become faithful in Jesus Christ. Only by placing our trust in God can we then rest in that divine Love and become the new creation that God wants us to be – called indeed to be saints in Abbots Langley!

Every Blessing

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Text for November:

Consider the lilies how they grow:  they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

St Luke, Ch 12, v 27