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CHILDREN'S EDUCATION |
SERMONS All
Saints' Day By David Christian An institution that is helpful to many people is the support group. Support groups can take many forms. They can be local chapters of national organizations centered on specific problems, such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Al-Anon. They can be local groups organized to provide support for parents after the death of a child or for survivors of abuse or for people living with chronic diseases. They can be as simple as a group of friends who meet regularly to talk about what is going on in their lives. But one thing that all support groups have in common is that they are safe places where we know that we will be supported and loved. Places where others will mourn with us in our misfortunes and rejoice with us in our triumphs. Places where we can learn from the examples of others, just like us, attempting to live their lives in a complicated and sometimes threatening world. In the church we remember throughout the year many of the great figures of the faith who provide examples for Christian life. We have special days set aside to commemorate and hold up Mary, the mother of our Lord, the Apostles and Evangelists, and other biblical figures. We have days when we remember martyrs of the faith through the ages, from the Holy Innocents through Justin and Agnes, martyred in Rome, through Bishop John Coleridge Patteson and his companions martyred in Melanesia in 1871, through Constance and her companions who died caring for the sick in Memphis, through the martyrs of New Guinea during the second World War. And we also have the example of those giants of the faith of our own day--giants like Mother Theresa and Desmond Tutu, to name just two--whose lives provide examples for all. But we cannot all be Mother Theresas or Desmond Tutus. We are not all called to live such lives. And there is a sense in which such giants seem almost larger than life. A sense in which we feel that we could never measure up to their examples, so why even bother. A sense in which the greatness of their lives and sacrifices seems to set them apart from us. This Sunday after All Saints' Day is a day in which we remember all the other saints. A day in which we honor all the people, people like you and me, who tried to live faithful lives. People no stronger or better or braver than we are, who answered the call of Christ in their lives as best they were able. Every Sunday in the Creed we profess belief in the Communion of Saints. Today is the day we celebrate that communion. Today is the day that we remember those people, people whose names may be remembered by no one but God, who have provided for us examples of living the Christian life. These are the people who represent our support group as Christians. These are the people we can look to for strength and comfort and an example to follow as we struggle to live our own lives of faith. Let me tell you about one such person, a woman who lives in Chicago and works as a domestic there. This woman's name is Cynthia Hosch. Mrs. Hosch is about 50 years old. She was happily married with one son when, in 1985, her husband died of a heart attack. She lost her job as a bank clerk and was unable to find another. When unemployment checks ran out she lost her apartment and was forced to send her 14 year old son to live with her mother. She joined the ranks of 22,000 other homeless people in Chicago, wandering the streets, washing in public rest rooms, sleeping in parks. One day she heard about an evangelical church in Chicago, the Crusader's Church. She visited. Through the church she was able to find a job that made it possible for her to rent a small apartment and bring her son back to live with her. One day, as she reflected on her new life and the life she had recently led on the streets, she decided to make some sandwiches for the homeless. She took the sandwiches, got on a bus, and rode until she reached a small park where several homeless people were gathered. "The Lord is going to bless you today," she said. Then she handed out the sandwiches and promised to return. She did return, and the crowd gradually grew to about 100. Now, every Thursday morning, she cooks meals that typically include 75 chicken legs, 25 pounds of ground beef, 20 pounds of potatoes, 15 loaves of bread, and a huge cake. Then, making seven trips up and down the two flights of stairs to her apartment, she carries everything to the street, finds a cab, and makes the ride across town. She takes particular care in her cooking because, she says, "I know the homeless haven't had nothing but garbage food." After the last person finishes eating, she carries the dirty pans home to soak in the sink and catches the train to reach her $250 a week job at noon. Mrs. Hosch is no super woman of the faith. On Thursdays her back is frequently sore and her head aches. She will probably not be remembered on any church calendar after her death. She will probably not in future years be held up before the faithful as an example of the Christian life. But to a small group of homeless people in a small park in Chicago who wait for her every Thursday, she is the hand of God. She is a saint. I raise Mrs. Hosch up before you today not because what she does is that exceptional. There are millions of other people today, throughout the world, doing things just as remarkable in response to the call of our Lord. This is our support group. These are the people we remember today. Let me invite you, if you would, to take a minute some time today to remember those people who have played an important role in your own life as examples to you of Christ's love. Some of them may even be seated here today. Raise them up before God, and maybe even tell them what they have meant to you. And take a moment to consider how you, in your turn, can be a saint to the stranger you will meet tomorrow on the way.
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Chapel
of the Cross · 674 Mannsdale Road · Madison, Mississippi
39110 · (601) 856-2593
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