All Saints Day
Nov
1
Written by:
Sunday, November 01, 2009
All Saints’ Day
Pastor’s Column
November 1, 2009
After this I had a vision of a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue. They stood before the throne and before the Lamb, wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.
Revelation 7
All Saints’ Day has always been one of my favorite feasts. Let’s face it: most of us are never going to be a canonized saint! But all of us have a deep calling and vocation to holiness.
Did you know that there is a picture of you in the Bible? The picture we are given from the first reading from the book of revelation speaks of a vast number whom no one could count wearing white garments and holding palm branches in their hands. This is a vision of the future: yours and mine! The Lord knows we are visual people: he wanted to give us a tangible image of the world to come.
Did you even have a filthy garment that would not clean up? The water is so hard over at the rectory that after 6 months, all my white things were turning orange! I had to find a better way to do things. Scripture makes a point to mention how white and clean the saints’ garments are. Their white robes represent the robes of baptism. But these people have not laundered their own garments. No, these are all forgiven sinners: they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb. When we submit our sins to the Lord, he washes them in his blood. It’s the only way to get them clean!
For serious stains on our soul and particularly mortal sins, there is no washing machine quite like the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Our Lord gave this gift to the church after he rose from the dead, telling the apostles that whose sins you forgive are forgiven (John 20:22-23). We will want to take advantage of this sacrament regularly while on earth, so that we will be ready when the Lord calls us.
Going to confession requires that we have the humility to walk in the door, a healthy awareness of our sins and a sincere desire to get beyond the damage these sins have wrecked in our lives. Our Lord has promised not to remember our sins when we have confessed them!
Saints are not perfect, just forgiven! You and I are called to be saints of the everyday. Every circumstance of our lives is an opportunity to grow in holiness by the choices we make and how we interact with others. A saint is someone who gets up again after a fall, tells the Lord that they are sorry, and tries again. Saints rely, over and over, on our Lord’s great promise to forgive them and the great future which lies ahead of them!
Father Gary