Rev. Joe's Weekly Blog Stuff

24th October 2024


Hello,

We are celebrating All Saints Day at Tean on Sunday, which I always enjoy. So, the question I have for you today is: Are you a saint?

It might depend on what you mean by ‘saint’. In the New Testament I thought until recently that the meaning was fairly clear. In 1 Corinthians 1:2, Paul writes,

“to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling”

That might imply that anyone who believes in Jesus is a saint (so most, but not all people who get the Stuff). However, Paul also writes,

“To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae” (Colossians 1:2),

which could imply that ‘saints’ and ‘brethren’ are two separate categories (he doesn't define which is which). Paul then complicates matters even further by writing,

“to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saint” (Romans 1:7),

which raises the question, ‘Who is beloved by God? Just the Christians, the Jews and the Christians, everybody? Didn’t God love everybody in Rome? Maybe not.

The Dancing Saints of St. Gregory of Nyssa (a church in California) present us with a different look at sainthood. They came up with a broad criteria of sainthood based on actions, irrespective of religion. After consultations, 90 of these saints were then painted on the inside walls of the church, representing sainthood in all its breadth and God-given diversity. One of the co-founders, Richard Fabian, wrote this:

“God works with more than Christians, and more than Christians are saints.”

The Dancing Saints still make sainthood a category (more saint-like than others), as with Catholic and Orthodox saints, who are canonized. However, Richard Fabian also wrote this,

“every human progressing toward goodness plays a part in the salvation of the world”.

So, are you a saint?

Peace and prayers, Joe


JOKE OF THE WEEK

There were two evil brothers. They were rich and used their money to keep their ways from the public eye. They even attended the same church and looked to be perfect Christians.


Then, their pastor retired and a new one was hired. Not only could he see right through the brothers' deception, but he also spoke well and true, and the church started to swell in numbers. A fund-raising campaign was started to build a new assembly.

All of a sudden, one of the brothers died. The remaining brother sought out the new pastor the day before the funeral and handed him a check for the amount needed to finish paying for the new building.

"I have only one condition." he said. "At his funeral, you must say my brother was a saint." The pastor gave his word and deposited the check.

The next day at the funeral, the pastor did not hold back. "He was an evil man" he said. "He cheated on his wife, abused his family, swindled his friends and the poor..." After going on in this vein for a small time, he concluded with "But, compared to his brother, he was a saint."