Sermon for All Saints Sunday, 2nd Nov 2025

Welcome sisters and brothers and peace be with you. MAY the words on my lips and the meditations in our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. <Amen>

There seems to be so many different ideas about what makes a ‘Saint’ and about what part they play in our lives.

As we look around us today, who would we name as contemporary saints? I leave those personal choices with you.

Looking through some books of Saints, I found:

Saints who were born into holy families, or who were the sons and daughters of noblemen and women, of kings and queens.

Saints who were the children of shepherds, of cruel parents, of tyrants, of paupers.

Saints who were orphans, or hardly knew their parents.

Saints who spent many years living lives, driven by lust and selfishness.

Saints who were like Saint Peter - hot-headed, temperamental!

Saints who were very eccentric.

Saints who spent their early years trying to destroy Christ’s church before being called to the light.

Saints who shut themselves away behind locked doors, only appearing to give
spiritual direction when called upon.

Saints who were shepherds, or cow-herders, or kitchen maids. <PAUSE>

Clearly, Saints came from all walks and conditions of life and had every type of character.

However, what does stand out for each and every Saint, of course, was their deep love of Jesus Christ, their devotion to him and their desire to always do His will, WHATEVER that might involve.

Also remember that Saints have never considered themselves ‘perfect’, without sin. They made mistakes (St Peter often got things wrong, and even denied Christ). Yet their love of God enabled them to seek his forgiveness and to get on with trying to do His will. <PAUSE>

NONE of the Saints, ancient or modern, considered themselves “Holy”.

NONE of the Saints wanted to be exalted.

NONE of the Saints publicly paraded their ministries. <PAUSE>

All the people I read about, and those we choose as modern saints, are not just performing “a duty”, but they are captured by a spirit that drives them to reach out with compassion to the needy.

All of them possess that spirit which flows through the Beatitudes (Luke 6:20-31), that Jesus outlined in his Sermon on the Mount and that we heard today.

Kim and I have visited the Mount. Today there is a modern, open church, on the slope looking down over the Sea of Galilee.

Many scholars see a parallel with Moses and Mount Sinai, but I would say to you that The Commandments are Law, The Beatitudes are Grace.

The Commandments are moral instructions but The Beatitudes show the difference between Law and Love. Jesus ushers in a new age where God’s freely-given love over-rides the rule of Law.

This spirit of love and care for all is evident in each of the Beatitudes.

The poor, the hungry, are those who know the core of their life lies not in power and possessions but in their walk with God. In modern terms -‘Blessed are those who are convinced of their basic dependency on God, whose lives are emptied of all that does not matter, those for whom the riches of this world just aren’t that important’.

Those who weep lament not only for lost loved ones, but for the loss of God and God’s justice from the heart of our ever-increasingly secular and politically polarised societies.

The persecuted are those who in their love for others, or in striving for justice, have made sacrifices, known rejection or carry the scars of battle with all that is broken or evil.

For all of these, the promise is a whole new state of being, a way of life where people see God, walk with God, feel God’s love and are empowered and sustained by God’s presence and spirit. <PAUSE>

It is to such a life that each one of US is called. It is a life and a promise lived and experienced by ordinary people like you and me. <PAUSE>As an example of a saintly life which overflows with the spirit of The Beatitudes, let me conclude with the story of Emma Woods, a young, New Zealand mother whose 4-year old son Nayan was tragically killed by a teenage driver whose car spun out of control.

Emma said,“We had had a perfect day at Play-centre, played lots of games together, and had a good time at the mall. I have no regrets about that day – we had fun together”.

Speaking of the young driver of the car Emma said,“We are pretty clear we don’t want this to be the defining moment of his life. He is young, only 17. He has got his whole life ahead of him and we hope he will use it to do good things, to be good with people, and maybe eventually to be a good father”.

I do not know if she is a person of faith, but Emma’s words are an astonishing statement of wisdom and generosity in the midst of unimaginable grief. She has drawn on the deepest resources of the Holy Spirit, while acknowledging the extent of her loss and the pain she will feel through long years ahead.

It is of THIS that sainthood is made: the commitment to walk with our God whose love sustains us and brings forth extraordinary love in ordinary and extraordinary situations.

For All The Saints.

I runga e te Ingoa o te Atua, te Matua, te Tama me te Wairua Tapu. <AMINE>