In our worship service this Sunday we celebrate All Saints’ Day. 

Wait, “celebrate” is an odd word choice there, isn’t it? All Saints’ Day generally has a more somber and poignant tone as we speak the names of those who have died in the last year. We certainly aren’t cheering any ones’s death, that would be horrifically ghoulish. But we do commemorate those who have passed on. That commemoration invites contemplation on death—which can be a frightening proposition, to be sure. 

Still, All Saints’ Day is much more than reenacting the funerals for those we have loved and lost. It is a time to remember and give thanks for all the people who have lived their faith in ways that moved us, taught us, helped us, and brought us into the fold of this diverse, world-wide family of followers of God in the Way of Jesus. 

So this festival of All Saints’ Day can and should, truly and rightfully, also be joyous! It is a day that naturally leads us to consider legacy:

What legacy have we received? What will be the legacy we leave behind? 

In other words, what are the stories we tell that remind us who we are and who we are called to be? What such stories do we hope to pass on? 

Regarding our congregation, to paraphrase a powerful song, “Who will remember our name? Who will keep our flame?” 

With an admittedly strange story from the Gospel of Luke as our guide, Pastor Dave will ponder those questions and more this Sunday, November 6th, in his sermon, “Who Tells Our Story?” 

Worship with us Sunday at 10:00am in person or online via our Woodridge UMC YouTube Channel. All are welcome!