We are in the midst of an unwanted transition right now, not something I have any control over, but something I am caught up in. And it makes my heart heavy. As I came home from work today, feeling the weight of grief, I could only see the base of the mountains. It felt like the very clouds were pressing down on my chest, making it hard to breathe. It was as if the skies outside and my heart inside stood eye to eye and made a place for my sorrow. Here is what came out of that:
All Saints Day has become one of my favorite holidays. We begin with an All Saints Feast at school, which helps get us into the right frame of mind for this particular holiday. Often, the feast is ON All Saints Day, though this year it was on October 31, in deference to our students and staff who are Catholic and Orthodox and would be celebrating with their churches on November 1. This year, instead of a homily, we had a group present Byzantine Chant for us at the feast. It was BEAUTIFUL! Here is John Michael Boyer chanting Psalm 23. This is not one of the pieces he performed at the feast, but is similar. Some were Greek, some English. All mesmerizing and beautiful.
For our own All Saints observance, we did what we have done the last few years... we light the Christ candle, and from that light individual candles for those whom God has used in our lives, living or dead, to shape our faith.
It is a beautiful time of remembrance for those who have passed on from this life. This year we remembered my grandmothers Helen Mowers and Kathryn Bitikofer, grandfathers Bill Mowers and Ralph Bitikofer, Eliana's great grandfather Rolan Albright, family friend Grandma Bennie, among others. Thank you, Lord, for those who have influenced the ways in which we have been raised to believe in and love you.
We remembered those saints who lived long before us, whose faithfulness paved the way for our own. Some of these included Martin Luther, Corrie Ten Boom, the apostle Paul, and Augustine.
We also remembered those saints who are still with us, who encourage us to walk faithfully day in and day out. Some of these are people we see and talk to regularly, like Craig Dunham, my parents Lauren and Kathy Bitikofer, Leif's parents Terry and Wenda Wickland, Craig and Bobbi Miller, Jason Bowker, and others. Some are people whose words have meant so much to us, bolstering us to shine His light forth in the darkness. Thank you, Lord, for the work and words of people like Andrew Peterson, Jenn Giles Kemper, and Malcom Guite.
I read two of Malcom Guite's sonnets from Sounding The Seasons to conclude our time, both written for All Saints Day.
Though Satan breaks our dark glass into shards,
Each shard still shines with Christ's reflected light,
It glances from the eyes, kindles the words
Of all his unknown saints. The dark is bright
With quiet lives and steady lights undimmed,
The witness of the ones we shunned and shamed.
Plain in our sight and far beyond our seeing,
He weaves their threads into the web of being.
They stand beside us even as we grieve,
The lone and left behind whom no one claimed,
Unnumbered multitudes, he lifts above
The shadow of the gibbet and the grave,
To triumph where all saints are known and named;
The gathered glories of his wounded love.
After that, we sat around the warmth and glow of the candles, meditating on God's goodness and our rich heritage of faith. As the candles burned down, we were reminded of the brevity of life on this earth, and our call to be salt and light in it, as we traverse the desert from captivity to promised land.
Lord, shine your light in us; make us faithful reflections of your light in this dark world. And as we walk through this last month of the liturgical year, let us be people of Thanks.
Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeclorum. Amen.
