Every week, I am privileged to preside over communion. It is during communion, when I recall the saints in all times and places, that the gift of Christ’s body becomes most evident to me. Hands that are withered reach out. Hands that are young reach out. Those who are married, divorced, single, poor, rich, educated, uneducated, differently abled, able-bodied—all different people, all different stories—and every one of them is reaching out, ready to receive God’s grace. It is a glimpse of heaven; a foretaste of the feast to come.
If I take a moment to notice that, I can almost feel the presence of the many others, all over the world, who are reaching out in the very same way. I can almost see those we have lost there with us, surrounding us with their witness and love. Uniting us all is Christ, filling our lives with love, and reminding us what a wonderful gift it is to be the church.
This message is excerpted from “Honoring our saints” by Michelle Terry in the October 2015 Cafe online magazine. Today is the 22nd Sunday after Pentecost. Today is All Saints Sunday.
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