Elections for All the Saints
Hoo EEEE. How’s your anxiety level?
The other night – just before I went to bed – I made the mistake of watching a recording of the PBS NewsHour’s political commentary with David Brooks and (guest) LZ Granderson.
Did it lull me to sleep? No, no it did not. Eyes wide open after thirty minutes of anxious thoughts, I got up and did what any sane person would do: I read the New York Times wedding section printed on newspaper. Now, that was calming. I soon fell asleep with love and happiness on my mind.
Yes, folks, the election is mere days away.
In the midst of this, All-Saints Sunday is right around the corner too. This is the day we celebrate the faithful who have passed during the previous year – and remember all those who came before them.
Could it be a both calming and inspiring event before Election Day?
My mom and I couldn’t have been farther apart on the political spectrum. She was a die-hard Republican. She and my dad took me to So. Many. Republican rallies. She cried when Richard Nixon resigned.
When I told her I voted (for the first time) for Jimmy Carter for President, she didn’t speak to me for a week. This was not how she had raised her only child. I had betrayed her.
Yet somehow, we managed to find ways to love and care for each other over the years – even as we both got more entrenched in our differing beliefs. She stopped giving me the silent treatment every time I voted for the wrong candidate.
My guess is that there are some of the Saints whom you will be honoring on Sunday whose opinions you did not wholeheartedly agree with. They may have been that proverbial thorn in your side.
But their faithfulness to God – and their understanding of how to answer God’s call – is worth celebrating. Even if we disagreed with them.
Elections come and go. They are consequential. There’s no denying it. And some, like this one, feel more important than others. But God calls us, the saints-to-be, not to be a people of fear or division. God calls us to be light unto the world.
I love how Eugene Peterson says it in The Message:
Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven (emphasis added).
In addition to reading the NYT’s wedding section, maybe it’s time that I thought more about what it means to be:
Light in the midst of darkness.
Hope in the midst of doubt.
Peace in the midst of anxiety.
I think even my mom could get behind that.
There are saints we will remember who pointed us that way. May their example of Light, Hope, and Peace shine before us this Sunday and into and past Election Day.
Gracious God, our holy and life-giving Spirit, as we approach Election Day, and the close of this election season, we pray that you would move upon every human heart of this nation to remove barriers that divide us, that walls of separation and suspicions may disappear, and all hatred and prejudice, which blocks us from the light of your love, would cease. From Sojourners
Related posts:
It’s Time to Celebrate the Saints
My Silent Witness, Four Years Later
My Silent Witness
Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki@ pexels.com
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Hey! Here’s a thought…Come hang out with me for an hour the day after the election.
“Write Your Best Year-End Letter” webinar
For some, writing the year-end giving/stewardship letter might seem daunting or overwhelming, but it’s one of the most important stewardship letters you’ll write all year. Why? Come to this Zoom meeting, eat lunch (bring your own) and learn with me how to write your best year-end letter yet. I'll share all my tips and tricks so that your letter stands out.
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Cesie Delve Scheuermann (pronounced “CC Delv Sherman,” yes, really) is a Stewardship Consultant for the OR-ID Annual Conference. She is also a Senior Ministry Strategist with Horizons Stewardship. For 25 years, while working as a volunteer and part-time consultant, she has helped raise millions of dollars for numerous churches and non-profit organizations. She wants you to listen to one of the greatest hymns ever written: For All the Saints. These folks know how to sing!
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