Brethren, all the saints through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and scourging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were killed with the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, ill-treated – of whom the world was not worthy – wandering over deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
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On Sunday we commemorate All Saints. Last Sunday we commemorated Pentecost when the spirit led us to all truth. This coming Sunday our church rightly remembers all the saints throughout all of created history, whether known or unknown and whether recognised or not. The reading comes from the Epistle to the Hebrews. You will recall that the principal theme of that epistle was to demonstrate the superiority of Christ who came to us as the better way. We are promised that we will receive the victor’s crown if we hold fast to the faith and persevere in the face of oppression – whatever that oppression may be. Christ is the new covenant which has perfected the old covenant and through the Eucharist we are able to become at one with.
Just as Christ is the image of his invisible father so also it is with the saints. Saints conform themselves to Christ and live in the spirit and thus have now become spirit-filled images of Christ. The light of course from the saints does not emanated from themselves but rather is a reflected light emanating from the Holy Spirit. It is through the medium of faith that we are able to discern this light and the stronger our faith, the stronger the light so discerned.
Chapter 11 of the epistle centres on faith. We are told that faith is a substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Such a statement is so encouraging and consoling to those who are struggling. What it in effect says is: look, things, as they are, may not be going terribly well for you but, if you believe, better days are ahead. To demonstrate this the author of the epistle begins to talk of faith that forms a Catenae or a chain from the beginning of world history. From Adam and Eve, if you will.
The faith of the saints continued through the Patriarchs down to the time of Moses. This is not to say that the saints themselves and their witness has finished. No, quite to the contrary; we could continue to identify this chain of faith to this present day and point out the witness that men of God have given to Christ in the face of disbelief, oppression and cruelty. When we think of saints we tend to think of them as people with extraordinary powers and with the ability to do all sorts of miracles and who are larger than life. This inspires us. We begin to look within ourselves and seek to emulate the saints in the hope that we too can carry out wondrous deeds. So we set as our spiritual goal to pray harder, to be more charitable and to live our life in Christ.
If that is our attitude then I think we are emulating the saints for the wrong reason. Saints themselves are ordinary people blessed by the grace of God to wrought miracles. It is not a mechanical thing. This is not something which can be turn on and off like a water tap. No, these saints believe that their rightful place was to be close to God. The one word that readily comes to mind about saints is “authentic”. Without authenticity, without true belief, belief that is unwavering and built upon the rock of Christ we are no more than frauds. Our first job is to build upon the rock of Christ authentically. Unless we are authentic then we cannot be true to ourselves and unless we are true to ourselves then we are false. Nothing can be built on falsehood. Indeed a person opens themselves up to the wiles of the devil who seeks to encourage their falsehood and delusion and thus is able to bring them down. There is no person greater at risk from falling to the devil than the person who believes that they are in some way more saintly than others.
Let me use the analogy of faith as a river. A river is something that has living water. If it stops running it is by definition no longer a river. It is a pond or a lake. As running water it travels down a defined pathway and is surrounded by land on each side of its banks. That sets the boundaries of the river. The banks determine the shape of the river. It is only when the banks are broken that the water from the river can meander wherever it may and wherever it will but that water cannot be said to be flowing in its water bed. That water has now become a flood – diffuse, without purpose and direction. So it is important to have strong banks to enclose the living water. On the left bank we have true doctrine. We have true belief. We have what is called akrivia or exactitude. After all, unless we know what we really believe in, what is the point of believing in something you don’t understand? Now on the right bank we have discernment. Discernment is the ability to determine the right course of action for each and every person that we come into contact with. In other words, one size does not suit all. Discernment demands that each person is viewed on a case-by-case basis. Discernment declares that the same course of action in one case can be manifestly correct and in another case with similar facts manifestly incorrect. So we need to cultivate discernment. We need to be as innocent as doves and as wise as serpents.
If we live our lives in Christ, if we cultivate love for Christ, if we live our lives authentically in Christ and if we act in that expression of love that we have for Christ then, we too, can become saints. Saints are not merely those that are recognised by the church. Saints are they that have lived their life in Christ. They can also be those who with their last breath have repented and have desired to join the side of Christ and to manifest him – even with their last breath can they be saved, just as the penitent thief was saved on the cross.
Notice that the epistle references suffering as well. It seems that suffering is part of the human condition. Nobody comes into the world and leaves it without suffering in some way, shape or form. Perhaps our suffering today is not as dramatic as those espoused in the epistle but for all that it is still suffering. If we believe in our faith then it will sustain us. After all the saints declared that it was their faith that allowed them to endure their trials and remain firm in their conviction and love for Christ. Faith is what connects us to Christ. Faith declares: “not for me! But for you Lord.” Unless we believe for the right reasons we are truly to be lamented as hypocrites. If we declare ourselves as Christians only in the cocooned safety of our middle-aged existence, daring to risk nothing then we gain nothing. Remember, Christ will not be found in the halls of secular power, he will not be found in the ranks of the timid, he will not declare himself as safe from harm. Rather, Christ will declare himself in the fields of human suffering. He shares in our trials and tribulations. He is constantly by our side – even if we are not constant in our faith. All we can do is to run the race of life as best we can with perseverance, courage and never lose sight of Christ, the source of our hope and inspiration.
