All Saints Day
Bishop Ray Sutton

In 1998 I attended a portion of the ten-year Lambeth conference of Anglican Bishops at Canterbury, England. I remember sitting in a room with approximately twenty to thirty African and some Asian Bishops. I recall being overwhelmed with the fact that the Church is so much bigger than I had ever experienced. I thought, “The Church extends to regions beyond me.” More than the size, however, I realized that I, as an American Anglican, needed what they had. It was not the material possessions of this world. I learned of their incredible need. I heard about critical shortages of food, water, light, literature, building supplies, medicines and so much more. On the other hand, what they lacked in the things of this world they seemed to have in abundance the things of the next world. Their spiritual vitality radiated. As C. S. Lewis observed in his classic, The Problem of Pain, goodness is like light, “naturally diffusive of itself” p. 150.

As I was surrounded by these godly saints, I was taught the need for what one theologian has called a “web of universal responsibility.” In the words of Father Zossima in Dostoyevski’s,The Brothers Karamozov,  “We are in paradise now, though we don’t see it, and we are responsible for all.” (Kreeft, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Heaven, p. 75).  In other words, we need that other realm of the larger church. We can’t live our lives in just one dimension. We need two dimensions, the local as well as the church catholic, and a catholic church as earthly as well as heavenly. This is the profound All Saints Day lesson found in the Scriptures of the day.

 Our Epistle lesson is from the Book of Revelation. It is a heavenly scene witnessed by the Apostle John. He sees thousands of different kinds of saints from every “nation, tribe and people.” But what strikes me most is an interesting exchange between one of the elder bishops and John. The Bishop asks John, “What are these arrayed in robes?” John immediately realizes that the Bishop knows the answer to the question. He is catechizing John. So John says to him, “Sir, thou knowest.” Then the Bishop explains that these people whom John sees in heaven are martyrs among all the saints. Further, these saints are in heaven praying for those of us on earth.

The point of the exchange teaches John what I learned at Lambeth. All the saints form a web of responsibility. We need the church catholic, a catholic church not only universal on earth but spanning into heaven. It is this church that we must have for our own spiritual strengthening. In the words of the collect today, we require grace to follow the blessed Saints in all virtuous and godly living. Those who have gone before surround us. They are our examples all around in a kind of heavenly bleachers. Their fellowship provides a web of responsibility.

It’s like the story of a girl named Linda. In the fall of the year, this young woman was traveling alone up the rutted and rugged highway from Alberta to the Yukon. Linda didn't know you don't travel to Whitehorse alone in a rundown Honda Civic, so she set off where only four-wheel drive vehicles normally venture. The first evening she found a room in the mountains near a summit and asked for a 5 A.M. wakeup call so she could get an early start. She couldn't understand why the clerk looked surprised at that request, but as she awoke to early-morning fog shrouding the mountain tops, she understood. Not wanting to look foolish, she got up and went to breakfast. Two truckers invited Linda to join them, and since the place was so small, she felt obliged. "Where are you headed?" one of the truckers asked. 'Whitehorse', in that little Civic? No way! The pass is dangerous in weather like this." "Well, I'm determined to try," was Linda's gutsy, if not very informed response. "Then I guess we're just going to have to hug you," the trucker suggested. Linda drew back. "There's no way I'm going to let you touch me!" "Not like THAT!" the truckers chuckled. "We'll put one truck in front of you and one in the rear. In that way, we'll get you through the mountains." All that foggy morning Linda followed the two red dots in front of her and had the reassurance of a big escort behind her as they made their way safely through the mountains. Caught in the fog in our dangerous passage through life, we need to be "hugged." With fellow Christians who know the way and can lead safely ahead of us, and with others behind, gently encouraging us along, we, too, can pass safely. So today we remember all the saints. We are reminded of this heavenly web of responsibility. Let us indeed do as we pray in the collect, allow their godly examples to influence us so that we come to joys unspeakable in Christ who is the Master of us all. Amen.