10-31-20

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
October 31, 2020
Scripture: Romans 6:3-5
Or don’t you know that all who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore, we were buried together with him through baptism into his death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too can walk in newness of life. If we were united together in a death like his, we will also be united together in a resurrection like his.

Thought for the Day: Tomorrow is All Saints’ Day, or what was called All-hallowmas centuries ago. Today, the day before All Saints’ Day, is known as All-Hallows Eve or what culture calls Halloween. It is fascinating how names can change, and in time, the meaning and rituals associated with a holiday can modify as well. A 1000 years ago, no one was thinking about ordering a Dracula costume off Amazon in hopes of snagging as many Snickers and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups as possible. But as Christianity borrowed from Celtic culture, there were those who enjoyed the custom of wearing costumes to ward off evil spirits in advance of honoring the saints. It was a time every year when the line that separated the living from the dead was blurred. Of course, as people of faith, we are not honoring the dead, but the living. For though we might grieve the physical deaths of those we love, we also make a dramatic claim in regard to how they are enjoying a resurrection like that of Jesus. Today, even as children try to navigate Trick-or-Treating, let us not forget that this day has a rich Christian history, a day when we are reminded how God has continued to blur the line between life and death. No, I’m not talking about Zombies or the Living Dead. I’m talking about a God who refused to allow death to have the final word.

Prayer: For all the saints, and even for some of the silliness associated with this time, we turn to you with gratitude, Holy God. Do not allow for the gulf between life and death to be so great that we lose hope. Instead, point us to those whose Christ-like witness continues to inspire hope and joy in all of us. For all the saints, we give thanks. Amen.

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