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All Saint's Day- we don't have to fear death

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Isaiah 25:6-9; Psalm 24; Revelation 21:1-6; John 11:32-44 Today we are celebrating the feast of All Saints. It is a celebration that started in the 300’s when churches in the east began to celebrate the feast of the “martyrs of the whole world”. This feast was celebrated on a few different days around the calendar, but within a few hundred years it was assigned to November 1st in the Western Church, and it was broadened to include all the saints, whether they were martyrs or not. The word “saint” is related to the word “sanctus”, and it basically means “holy one”. Something that is “holy” has been set apart for God’s purposes. All Soul’s Day is the following day, November 2nd. This is a day to remember all the faithful departed. This celebration began in the 11th century. Originally it came from the idea that those who died without being considered saints had to go through a kind of purification before entering fully into the glory prepared for them. The Anglican Church has rejected
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Job and suffering

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Job 42: 1-6, 10-17; Psalm 34: 1-8, (19-22); Hebrew 7: 23-28; Mark 10: 46-52 Some of the books in the Bible are designated as “Wisdom literature”. The most obvious book with that designation is the book of Proverbs. Proverbs is a book that gives general guidance about living life. The advice that’s given draws from observation of cause and effect. For example, Proverbs 10:4 says,  “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”  Generally, that is true. If you work hard, you are more likely to be financially prosperous. The prophets will often talk about God’s protection for those who are obedient to the commands of God, and disaster for those who are disobedient to God’s Law. For example, in Deuteronomy 28 we read,  “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth” (28:1).   “However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all
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Jesus is our Heavenly High Priest- Hebrews 5

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  J ob 38: 1-7, (34-41);  Psalm 104: 1-9, 25, 37b;  Hebrew 5: 1-10;  Mark 10: 35-45 There are two psalms quoted in our Hebrews reading. The first is a quote from Psalm 2-  “You are my Son, today I have begotten you” (2:7).  This is a psalm about the king, and scholars believed it was used for the installation of a new king in the line of King David. This Psalm became attached to the expected Messiah. The other Psalm that is quoted is from Psalm 110. Psalm 110 is the most quoted part of the Old Testament in the New Testament. It too was considered a Psalm about the coming Messiah. In Psalm 110, it talks about the Messiah as a king and also as a priest. The letter to the Hebrews says that a high priest is “chosen from among mortals”. So, he is human. He is from the community. He is one of the people. … Priests in the Old Testament worked to create, maintain, and reestablish the divine order. Often this has to do with distinguishing between the holy and the common, the clean and unclean
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Gratitude as an Antidote to Anxiety- Matt 6

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  Joel 2: 21-27; Psalm 126; 1 Timothy 2: 1-7; Matthew 6:25-33 Anxiety has to do with the persistent underlying presence of fear or panic. It’s the presence of worry, unrest, or a sense of danger. Statistics Canada reported that  “the proportion of Canadians aged 15 years and older with a generalized anxiety disorder doubled from 2012 to 2022 … . The largest 10-year increases were seen among young people, particularly young women aged 15 to 24 years, for whom the prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder tripled. … [Regarding] social phobia … comparisons with 2002 suggest a fourfold increase in the prevalence of social phobia among young women. ” [1] Statistics Canada is talking about disorders, which generally means a kind of anxiety that significantly interferes with living your life. It is overwhelming and it is chronic. So, we can probably assume that the numbers of people dealing with anxiety without it getting to the point of being a disorder is probably quite a bit higher. The
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St. Michael and All Angels

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Genesis 28:10–17; Revelation 12:7–12; John 1:47–51 Today we celebrate the feast of St. Michael and All Angels. The topic of angels tends to divide people into extremes. On one end, some people tend to be obsessed with angels, so they read books about angels and try to communicate with them. If you walk through the New Age section in the bookstore you will find numerous books on angels and even tarot cards based on angels. … On the other extreme, some people place angels into the same category as unicorns, faeries, and leprechauns. To them the idea of angels being real is an offence to rationality and science. As we heard from our readings, angels are present throughout the Bible. They also appear in the experiences of the saints throughout history. If they are so present in the Bible and throughout the history of the church we should probably be cautious about denying their existence. But, we should also be cautious to not allow our imaginations to run wild.
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Why worship using a liturgy?

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  There are a number of modern Christians who don’t understand praying using a liturgy. In many Protestant circles there is a leaning towards spontaneity and individuality. So, saying communal prayers together, and prayers that were written by someone else from a different time and culture, can seem very strange.     First, what I would like to say to someone who feels that way is that we are surrounded by liturgy. Our lives are filled with ritual. Even for churches who consider themselves non-liturgical, they worship according to a pattern. For example, a pattern I often see when visiting churches is the following- the musicians play a number of songs, which is followed by a sermon, and then a prayer, and then an offering, and more songs. That is a kind of liturgy. The songs will include many that are familiar to those who are worshipping. The words are the same words, and the people often want their favourite songs. These songs are like a prayer written by someone else and sung (pr
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Godly Wisdom- James 3-4

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James 3:13 – 4:3, 7-8; Mark 9:30-37 James’ letter has a lot of practical advice for how to live as Christians. We can sort of hold it alongside the Sermon on the Mount, which also shows us what it looks like to live in the Kingdom. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus deals with things like anger, lustful thoughts, marriage, making promises, revenge, loving enemies, giving to those in need, how to pray and fast, anxiety, judging others, and treating people the way you would like to be treated. These are all very common issues, and Jesus teaches us how to practically approach these things with a heavenly mindset. Likewise, James’ letter deals with issues like not showing favouritism to the wealthy, our faith having an effect on how we live, being mindful of the way we speak, and having patience in suffering. These are all pretty practical and everyday realities that we face. And James is giving practical advice about facing these realities with a heavenly mindset. In the portion of
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