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Green Blades Preaching Roundtable

All Saints Sunday

Year B
November 3, 2024
Rev. Emily Meyer

Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9 OR Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 24
Revelation 21:1-6a
John 11:32-44

Hymn suggestions:

All Creation Sings: As Rivers Flow from a Distant Spring, #1046

Before the Waters Nourished Earth #1049

For the Troubles and the Sufferings/Pelas dores deste mundo, #1051

November 1 (or November 3, depending upon when you’ll observe All Saints Day) lands perilously close to November 5, Election Day, 2024.

 

And in our anxiety and fatigue and fear of further upsetting already rickety apple carts, it will be tempting to focus on the Saints who have gone before; it will be deeply tempting to focus on remembering people and times that have passed and look toward the rich feast and beautiful garden, the triumphal and peaceful hereafter.

 

But while our texts can support the pie-in-the-sky after-life for which so many remaining believers long, today’s texts actually support a much deeper engagement in the here-and-now - and indeed, the electoral process - than a cursory glance may recognize.

 

Our First Reading, from the Wisdom of Solomon, beginning in the first verse reads: ‘But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them.’

Whenever a reading opens with the word, ‘but’, it is wise to read back a few verses to get some context.

 

This, ‘But’, draws our attention to Wisdom of Solomon 1 and 2, which reveal that this discourse is addressed to ‘you rulers of the earth’ (1:1), who are divided into the ‘righteous’ (3:1) and the ‘ungodly’ (1:16), who ‘test God’ by their ‘useless grumbling’ and ‘lying mouths’ (1:11), and who ‘summoned death’ and ‘made a covenant with him’ (1:16) through their ‘unsound reasoning’ (2:1), determining that since death comes to us all and no one will remember us when we’re gone - that we should, ‘enjoy the good things that exist, and make use of the creation to the full’ (2:6).

 

That is, since we’re all going to die, we might as well take what we want and enjoy this life.

At one time this was a sin called ‘hedonism’. We don’t use that term much these days, but in creation care circles, we call this sin, ‘extractive economy’: a perspective on life that says, ‘I will take what I want (from any part of creation, including other humans), use it to whatever purpose I want, and throw it away when I’m done.’ This reasoning is, indeed, an invitation to death.

This reasoning is, indeed, deeply ‘ungodly’ in its abject refusal to experience all creation as Sacred, to recognize that all ground is Holy Ground.

This reasoning is, indeed, deeply ‘ungodly’ in its absence of creative, generative, life-giving compassionate care for all that God has created.

 

Psalm 24:1 partners with Wisdom of Solomon to underscore the Sacred nature of all creation. ‘The spirit of the Holy One has filled the world’ (Wis. of Sol. 1:7) sounds a lot like the Psalmist’s declaration, ‘The earth is Yahweh’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it’ (24:1).

 

And the two texts agree on what God desires: Wisdom of Solomon’s, ‘righteousness is immortal’ (1:15) is echoed by the Psalmist’s ‘Who shall ascend the hill of the Holy One? And who shall stand in God’s holy place? Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false and do not swear deceitfully.’ (24:3-4).

 

But boy, oh boy, when the struggles to live righteously and create Beloved Community are so constantly uphill slogs, it can be very easy to feel like we are among the dead already. We who struggle to birth the ‘holy city’ (i.e. Beloved Community) promised in Revelation appreciate the references to ‘torment’ and ‘affliction’ and ‘destruction’ and ‘punishment’ (Wisd. of Sol. 3:1-3).

But we also recognize that the promised Holy City is not merely an other-worldly, pie-in-the-sky, after-we-die hope. The Holy City, comes ‘down out of heaven’: ‘See the home of God is among mortals. [God] will dwell with them as their God; they will be [God’s] peoples, and God’s own self will be with them and be their God.’ (Rev. 21:3) God’s Holy City is among ‘mortals’, here, in this world.

Wisdom gives us another Way to live - in this world. Seeing the Divine within all creation, living within the bounds of that sacred relationship and out of compassion for all creation - this is righteousness that leads to immortality.

 

And we recognize that the great miracle of New Life performed by Jesus prior to his own resurrection - the raising of Lazarus - did not find Lazarus in some other world or dimension or heavenly realm. Lazarus was raised to New Life here, amidst his sisters and family, his home and community. Lazarus’ New Life was on Earth.

 

What does this mean for us on the eve of these highly consequential elections?

 

It means when we are aware of lying, deceitful, extractive-economy-based rulers, we must vote them out of office; and we certainly want to do everything we can to not allow them to be voted into office. These are the ‘rulers’ who have made a covenant with death.

And it means that we cannot simply rely on rulers.

It means that we must hear - and name - the ‘ungodly’ voices of those who lie and deceive and recognize them for what and who they are.

 

We must also see - and identify - extractive economies, acknowledge our own complicity in the hedonistic lives in which we all find ourselves, and recognize that these are covenants with death.

 

In hearing, seeing, naming, identifying and owning our roles - that is, in confessing our complicity - we receive forgiveness - and we break the bonds.

 

We are free, then, to hear Wisdom’s voice, to embrace the Psalmist’s hope, to envision the great Revelation, to see the New Life that is possible right here in this world: birthing Beloved Community, grounded in awareness that all creation is Sacred, every place is Holy Ground, and in this awareness develop a love, respect, compassion and care for this world.

In this we find immortality.

In this, we join the life of all the saints who have gone before and find ourselves reborn.

Originally written by Rev. Emily P.L. Meyer for Green Blades Rising Preacher’s Roundtable. ministrylab@unitedseminary.edu

Find more from Emily Meyer at www.theministrylab.org

Rev. Emily Meyer
Rev. Emily Meyer
The Ministry Lab
Minneapolis, MN

Rev. Emily Meyer (she/her), Executive Director of The Ministry Lab
As an ordained pastor in the ELCA, Emily interned in Seaside, OR, served as pastor, liturgical artist, and faith formation leader in suburban, ex-urban and rural Minnesota congregations, created and directed the multi-congregational affirmation of baptism program, Confirmation Reformation, and was pastor of Fullness of God Lutheran Church in the retreat center, Holden Village. She currently serves as executive director of The Ministry Lab (St Paul, MN), where she consults and curates and creates resources for progressive UCC, UMC, and PC(USA) congregations throughout Minnesota and the United Theological Seminary community. Rev. Meyer leads contemplative and creative retreats and small groups. Between pastoral gigs, she has enjoyed costume designing, choreographing, and performing. She lives in Minneapolis, MN, with spouse Brian, daughter Natasha, and two Wirehaired Pointing Griffons, Kiko and Zip.

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