Sunday after All Saints’ Day (Revelation 21:1-6)  11/04/2012

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I was glad to see the Halloween trick-or-treaters out this past Wednesday evening. The fun and innocence of young folks in costume is fun to watch and fun to share with others. Images of Halloween festivities remind us of a time when we shared in their innocence and lived in a time when the harsh realities of this world did not crowd our minds. The festivities of this Halloween were a happy change from last year’s terrible storm, but the disruptions of the recent storm felt here at St. John’s were a reminder that millions of people south of us were not as fortunate. The clashing images of happy young children in costume and the raw images of storm destruction were not lost on us, people who have lived through both experiences. But pictures of happy little trick-or-treaters take us back to a time, for some of us a distant time, but a time prior to having given way to the realization that the world is comprised of many complexities. As a young boy during the 1960s there were many worldly realities that I did not understand during that time. Among my first realizations of this turbulent period of American history was the return of my Uncle from a far away place called Vietnam. After his service as a US Marine he may have physically left the country of Vietnam, but the experience itself was not something that was easily left behind. His stories brought me to a growing awareness of this world and a new awareness of his journey through life, a journey that proved the difficulties of war cast a long shadow. And the images and experiences of this past hurricane have reminded us of the power of nature and have highlighted the truth that there are cosmic realities far greater than what we can control or even imagine. Life can point us in a direction that we had not anticipated; and on this holy day of All Saints we remember that in the midst of complexity and change we are anchored by those whom we love, and on this day we remember especially those whom we have loved and have gone to a place where we know not, a place we can only imagine. Continue reading →