| November 1, 2001 |
| As Luke tells the story, Jesus is surrounded by the desperate and the despised. They probably pushed and shoved wanting to touch him because they needed healing. Some translations begin by saying that Jesus “lifted up his eyes to them”. It gives us a sense that he was down there on the ground with them tending the pain, looking them in the eye, touching their tears, listening to their whispered pleas. He was there in solidarity with the needy. He was more comfort giver than teacher, more tender than instructive, more embracing of their pain than the distant lawgiver. |
| Then he talks of them to those who are watching. He speaks of the poor, the persecuted, the grieving, the lowly, the hungry, the sad, the hated, the outcasts and he calls them “Blessed.” They are the holy ones, they are the Saints. Not the comfortable, powerful, respected, and secure. His message comes as a surprise to a people who look upon the comfortable, powerful, respected and secure as being blessed and special. |
| It is a message that belongs on this day: All Saints Day, and it is one that bears repeating, year after year until we get it right. The Saints, the Holy Ones, the ones who bear the face of God for us are not all in heaven, and they are not dead.They don’t look too good. They are dirty and feverished. Theyare poor and diseased. They don’t wear the latest style, and no one is pushing to sit next to them. Yet, Jesus says: they are Blessed, and he’s down there with them. |
| Perhaps this dayinvites us to get real about Saints; to get honest about them; and get serious about our own call to sanctity. The road to holiness may not be a way of piety, countless pious prayers, and perfectly sinless lives.Considering those Jesus has called Blessed, one might wonder how they got that way: how they got hungry, poor, persecuted, abandoned, and sorrowful. It might just be because they took Jesus seriously, and they paid a price for it. |