November 2009 In My View

Dear Friends,

November is the month in which the Church remembers its saints. The month begins with the Festival of all Saints and ends with the celebration of the Reign of Christ on Nov. 22. Both festivals serve to draw our attention to the Christian understanding that we are people who live between the times. We live with the knowledge that God has come among us in Christ. Through his ministry of teaching and healing, through his death and resurrection, and through the presence of his Holy Spirit the reign of God has drawn near to us. Through our baptism we share in the new life of this reign, which we also call the kingdom of God. But our world is a long way from the fullness of God's reign. People become ill, tragedy strikes, relationships are broken, and we see daily reports of the suffering and pain of the world. And so we look forward in hope to the time when God will reign in fullness and there will be no more pain, no more suffering, and no more tears. The celebration of the Reign of Christ holds before us the hope of the fulfillment of all things in the perfect love of God. And so we live our lives in between the coming of Jesus into our human life and its final fulfillment. The lives of the saints are a reminder of how God’s life is made known in the lives of those around us. The list of saints includes the great figures of the gospels, and exemplary figures through history, but it also includes ordinary and unnamed people whose lives have revealed the life of Christ in their time and place. So many people reveal something of Christ's presence in their lives and in so doing make known God's reign. It has been said that a saint is someone the light shines through — and this month we give thanks to God for the many people and lives in whom that light has shone for us.

All Saints Day is November 1 and on that day I will be preaching in the parish of St. Chad's, Toronto on my way to the House of Bishop's meeting this month. When I received an invitation to preach I was told that there is a stained glass window in that church dedicated to the Glory of God and in memory of Bishop Clark of the Diocese of Kootenay. St. Chad's is a long way from this diocese, and I wondered how a window in memory of a Bishop of this diocese ended up in a parish church in Toronto. I learned that Bishop Frederick Patrick Clark who served as Bishop of this Diocese from 1948 to 1954, died in his sleep in the rectory in Cranbrook during a parish visit. He was the only Bishop of Kootenay to live in Nelson and from there he travelled the roads of this beautiful diocese. His father was a member of St. Chad's and consequently a window was placed in the church to commemorate the Bishop and this diocese. I will look forward to being there and bringing greetings from all of you. In many ways Bishop Clark was an ordinary man, but his life also pointed others toward the One whom he served and reflected something of the life of Christ in his time here. As I see the stained glass window in Toronto, I am sure I will be reminded of one through whom the light shone through. In my view we have all met many of God's Saints during the course of our lives — and much to our surprise, there may be some who will say that they have seen something of God's love and God's reign revealed in us. I pray that may be true for each one of us.

Faithfully, +John