Readings for the Feast of All Saints’ Day
This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA on November 2, 2025.
Today is the third and final day of the Fall Triduum: the three days of All Hallows’ Eve, All Hallows’ Day, and All Souls’ Day, which together function as a “powerful mirror-image of the energy flowing through the Spring Triduum” of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Eve when we celebrate the miraculous “resurrection” movement from death to life, while watching winter turn into spring. The Fall Triduum, on the other hand, acknowledges the sobering and unavoidable movement from life to death as we witness death and decay in the plants and trees around us, as the days grow shorter, and the nights grow longer. On this final day of the Autumn Triduum, we remember all the faithful departed, all our beloved deceased who have passed through the gateway we call death. On this day, I extend to you the same threefold invitation I extend at our memorial and burial services: the invitation to give thanks for our beloved deceased, to grieve, and to reaffirm our faith in the promise of the resurrection, in the promise that we will see our beloved again. May the eyes of our hearts be opened and enlightened to see. This morning’s reading from the Book of Daniel, in which my namesake sees animals in heaven, reminds us that this promise of heavenly reunion extends to our beloved beasts as well, our pets, our cats and dogs and others. Just last night, I invited our sister Julie Lawson to give thanks for her beloved dog Macy, who has been faithfully attending Christ Church for more than a decade; and who this morning (about an hour ago) crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. Please keep Julie in your prayers as she continues to grieve the tragic loss of her son Nico and now begins to grieve the loss of her faithful companion Macy.
The theme of spiritual vision pervades our readings today as the prophet Daniel elaborates upon his dream; as Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, prays for the eyes of their hearts to be enlightened; and as Jesus offers prophetic vision in his Blessings and Woes. I translate the first verse of today’s Gospel in the following way: “Jesus looked into his disciples’ eyes and said…” And so, I invite you to hear the following words of Christ today, words translated from the original Greek, as if Jesus were looking into your eyes today and speaking these words to you:
“Be of good cheer, you poor ones,
for God will share his glory with you.
Be of good cheer, even now as your stomachs growl,
for your hunger will soon be satisfied.
Be of good cheer even as you weep now
for you will soon be glowing with laughter.
Be of good cheer even when people hate you and exclude you,
when they falsely accuse you and scapegoat you because of your association with me,
the Lamb who is the Son of Man.
Cheer up and leap for joy even today
because I have given you the vision of the prophets and the eyes of the poets
to see the vast rewards [the ineffable joys] waiting for you in heaven.
But heed this warning, you who are filthy rich now:
this is all the comfort you’re going to get.
Heed this warning, you who are full now:
You will go hungry.
Heed this warning, you who laugh now:
you will grieve and mourn and lament.
Heed this warning, you who receive other people’s praise:
remember the false prophets were treated the same way.
For those of you who are still listening
and still willing to listen,
I say to you:
Love your enemies,
be good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you,
pray for those who insult you.
If someone strikes you on your jawbone,
offer him the other side;
and if someone steals your shirt,
give him your undershirt as well.
Give to everyone who asks of you;
and when others take your things away, don’t ask for them back.
Do to others what you would want them to do to you.”
As Jesus looks into his disciples’ eyes (and your eyes), he says, “I have given you the vision of the prophets and the eyes of the poets to see the vast rewards [the ineffable joys] waiting for you in heaven.” Receive this promise today and open the eyes of your hearts to see the riches of the saints’ glorious inheritance and the immeasurable greatness of God’s power for us who believe, the power of the resurrection. Remain open to heavenly vision today as we reaffirm our faith in the renewal of our baptismal vows, as we pray the prayers of the people, as we pray the litany of remembrance, as we sing praises together, and especially as we celebrate Eucharist together.
After the Closing Hymn and Dismissal, we will all be given another opportunity to receive heavenly vision of the church triumphant, of the glorious company of the faithful departed, as we listen to Olivier Messiaen’s musical expression of his own vision, his Apparition of the Eternal Church, performed on our organ by Dr. David Schofield, who has written a note about this piece on page 22 of your bulletin. This piece “uses an arc form with a repeated throbbing bass rhythm, and a harmonic sequence that slowly transforms. The arc builds from pianissimo to a thundering C major chord to the full organ, and then slowly returning to pianissimo. Written in 1932, when the composer was 24, it is a full-bodied example of Messiaen’s mysticism. Here he imagines the eternal church; that is, all souls in the heavenly realm and all saints, in a moment when the veil is lifted and that which we can sometimes sense but not see, becomes suddenly fully visible. The reality of it becomes overwhelming as it is revealed, dwarfing the here and now of the day to day; that which we usually call reality.” In order to give us all an opportunity to listen to this piece, we will postpone the greeting line until after the Closing Voluntary is over.
On this Feast of All Saints and All Souls, may the eyes of our hearts be enlightened to see the eternal church, to see all souls in the heavenly realm and all saints dwarfing the here and now while also deepening our gratitude for the here and now and reminding us that when we grieve we do not grieve as those without hope because for God’s faithful people, life is changed, not ended, and when our mortal body lies in death, there is prepared for us a dwelling place eternal in the heavens. Amen.
DANIEL DeFOREST LONDON 