We are Saints in the making!
Why saints aren't just dead people.
This All Saints Day coming up on Sunday November 1, I share some reflections from my mentor, Canon Gauthier:
When we hear the word “saint” we immediately think of “dead people.” The kinds of people you name churches after. But in the New Testament, the term Saint is normally used to describe people who are very much alive and also ordinary followers of Jesus Christ; people just like you and me. In Paul’s letter to the Romans, the word is used eight times, for instance: “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints.” (Rom. 1:7) Paul uses the word in his greetings at the top of his letters: “To all the saints” in a given city. If Paul were writing to us today see might well open his letter with the words: To the saints who are in the North Dallas Suburbs in the State of Texas.
So how did we come to associate the term “saint” with dead people? Because people do not cease to be members of Christ’s body when they die. This is what the Creed describes as the “Communion Of Saints.” This means both those of us who are sill alive (the Church “militant” meaning we are still in the fight!) And also those who are already with the Lord: the Church Triumphant (already enjoying the fruits of his victory). Compare it to a train coming out of a tunnel. Jesus Christ is the engine pulling the train. The Church Triumphant are the train cars that have already emerged out of the tunnel into the light. The Church Militant are those still in the tunnel, but that will soon come out into the light as well. As Christians we can forget that we too have been called to be saints!
On Sunday we will hear about what it means to live our lives as Saints in the making! I hope to see all of the Church Militant together as we fellowship with the Church Triumphant through our eternal bond in Christ!
