All Saints’ Sunday/Fall Pledge season kick-off Sunday

November 6, 2022

Ephesians 1:11-23; Psalm 149; Luke 6:20-31

Sermon by The Rev Julie Platson

A CALL TO RENEWAL AND GROWTH IN DISCIPLESHIP THROUGH THE FIVE MARKS OF MISSION

All Saints’ Sunday – is one of my favorite days on the church calendar…

Why? Because here in the midst of all of us gathered in church today, we take time to recall not only the famous saints in church history, but to remember the cloud of witnesses all around us, the family and friends who have died and no longer physically sit in the pews beside us, or at the dinner table at home with us…but are very much alive to us now, in the ways they continue to inspire and encourage us today…

All Saints’ Sunday, for me – takes all the liturgical seasons of the church year, all the stories about God, all the stories about the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, all the stories of our own baptisms, all the stories about our families and friends, all the stories of the losses, hurts, dreams and hopes that unite us as one humanity, and it invites us to pause and think about what it all means…for us, and for the lives of those around us now, and those who will come after us…

As we move closer to the end of this liturgical year, it invites us to pause and ask ourselves…What do I believe? Why do I continue to strive to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, and those who have impacted my life of faith…why do I continue to Hope in the One, Jesus Christ, who in the gospels, gives us alternative visions of what our world could be like, as we work and pray together, with all the saints, the living and the dead, for God’s kingdom to come, God’s reign of Love to come, here on earth, as in heaven…

It's a time to pause and think about this question: “Why is my hope/faith/love with Jesus Christ?”

That question refers to the 1st Mark of Mission, to Tell… as adapted in Bishop Mark’s call to the people of the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska…to a time of renewal and growth in discipleship through the Five Marks of Mission…

Here at St Peter’s, we will be using this framework of the Five Marks of Mission throughout the next year, to help us discern, shape us, transform us, and guide us in all that we will do here at St Peter’s and in the community…

In this month of November, and in this Fall Pledge campaign season, we will do a brief overview and exploration of these Five Marks of Mission, and invite some personal stories and responses to each of the Five Marks of Mission…

It’s important to know, that these Five Marks of Mission, as adapted to capture Bishop Mark’s call to the people of this Diocese – aren’t just a list of five things to do once, and then check the box off that you, we’ve completed it. They are meant to keep us practicing and discerning throughout the entire year, and lifetime, as we seek to grow together as the people of God who live the faith and hope of Jesus in such a way that we become an invitation to a new life that is consistent with Jesus’ way of love.

So, today, we begin with the 1st Mark of Mission – to Tell…

This one invites us to pray and reflect on our individual relationship with Jesus, and to prepare a simple, from the heart response to this question: “Why is my hope/faith/love with Jesus Christ?” And we are invited to share our answer with others…This can be done in times of just having a casual, personal conversation with someone…

Your answer to this question may change and include a variety of reasons and responses to the question over time, as you become more attuned to recognizing Jesus’ presence in your life, and more comfortable in articulating why you believe what you do…

On this All Saints’ Sunday – I think we can all agree – that there have been (many) saints in our lives – everyday, ordinary saints that we call family and friends, who have influenced our faith, and can help us answer this question today - “Why is my hope/faith/love with Jesus Christ?” And it’s not because they were perfect or had never wavered in their faith that we call them saints, but because we can see where these everyday folk, like you and I, had dared to put all of their hope/faith love in Jesus Christ…and got up every day and went out into the world to strive to live out their beliefs in the best way they could…and with as much love that they could share with all of those they met along the way……

I’ve asked Kit (Kathryn) to share a personal story this morning, reflecting on that question, as she thought about one (of many) saints in her life who continues to influence her faith journey now…

*Kit share (at 8am) – see short version of Kit’s reflection below

Kathryn & Julie share (at 10am) – check in Kathryn & Julie sometime about the “family saint” that they talked about today…

As you head out into your week…I invite you to simply reach out to someone this week – by phone call, out for a walk, visit over a meal…or begin by sitting with someone at the potluck after the 10am service today…and have a casual conversation, sharing stories with each other about the special saint in your lives who continues to inspire you and influence your faith journey and your life now…and share some heartfelt words that help you express why your Hope/faith/love is with Jesus Christ…

Let us pray:

HYMN after sermon: A Thousand Alleluias (A Cloud of Witnesses Around Us)

Click here for Recording of the Hymn

A cloud of witnesses around us, a thousand echoes from the past,

proclaim the One who freed and found us, and leads us on, from first to last.

For such a gift, let all uplift a thousand alleluias.

A carnival of faiths and cultures parading through our settled praise,

with jangled rhythms, songs and dances, expresses Love’s expansive ways.

Christ is our song. To God belong a thousand alleluias.

A crowd, that clamors pain and anger, prevents us from nostalgic pride;

the cries of poverty and hunger recall us to our Savior’s side.

There we entrust, to God most just, a thousand alleluias.

A throng of future shapes and shadows, a world that may, or may not be,

names us the servants and the stewards of all the Spirit longs to see.

In awe we bend, and onward send a thousand alleluias.

A rainbow-host of wandering children, God’s varied image, from all lands,

awakes again our founding vision, that onward, urgently expands.

Give all, give more. Let love outpour a thousand alleluias.

*Kit’s story at the 8am service today - ‘Tell’ Mark of Mission

I first met Larry and Helen Steele at All Souls’ Episcopal Church in Okinawa in the fall of 1986. They looked as if they’d stepped out of a Norman Rockwell illustrator. They were both DODDS teachers at the Marine base high school; every summer, they returned to their small farm in Palmer to grow potatoes and other crops. As a teenager, Larry had health issues that left him with some mobility and balance issues, but that never stopped him from living an active life, from finding joy and beauty all around, and from always expressing gratitude in words, in worship and in action. He always had lollipops and small bills in his pockets in case someone in

need approached. Larry and Helen were the most generous people I’d ever met, giving freely of their time and their treasure, because they understood everything they had was a gift from God, given to them so they could share with others.

Larry and I were paired up on a stewardship team, and spent many hours exploring our beliefs on giving and living and being. I soaked up Larry’s experiences and teaching. In 1990, we were transferred to mainland Japan, and Larry and Helen retired from teaching, sold their Okinawan home and moved permanently back to Palmer. We lost touch until 2001, when I contacted them while on a trip to Anchorage; we caught up with each other over a long lunch. As we left the restaurant, Larry asked, ‘So what are you doing with stewardship these days? We’d like to help you re-charge those batteries.’ We met up a year later at the Episcopal Network for Stewardship conference in Washington DC, with Larry and Helen covering most of my expenses.

For the next 4 years, we stayed in touch – in person, by phone, by mail and email – and exchanged thoughts and prayers. In September 2006, I received a letter from Larry’s daughter, Daisy, telling me her father had passed away suddenly a few days before. It took a while, but I realized that Larry and Helen Steele were paying it forward when they gave me the gift of the ‘stewardship recharge,’ but their gift wasn’t just for me. They knew they were also giving a gift to the people of St. Peter’s, to the community of Sitka, to the Diocese of Alaska. That’s how they lived their lives.