These weeks when we cannot gather in person for Sunday worship, Lakewood United Church of Christ is providing brief weekly sabbath programs for you to listen to on your own or with others in your social isolation group. They will be posted on Friday so that you can schedule your sabbath time to suit your schedule and your spiritual inclinations. We hope these programs are of spiritual support to you in these difficult times.
The post this week focuses on All Saints Sunday. It is a time to think about those we name as saints, people who have shown us something of God, of Divine Love. And it is a time to reflect on our relationship with all those who have gone before us. As Albert Einstein reminds us, “A hundred times a day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other people, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the full measure I have received and am still receiving.”
This post includes a scripture reading done by Jim Andrews, a reflection from Rev. Kim Wells and a music video including pictures of saints submitted by the congregation. We hope this post helps to feed your spirit in these difficult times.
You are invited to find a quiet space, inside or outside. Light a candle. Take a look around you. Breathe. Life-giving breath. Be present.
You may begin by offering this reading:
Ye who have gone before,
Ye stillborn baby,
Ye stalwart soldier,
Ye slave who never made it off the ship,
And ye who labored long years in the field.
Ye who have gone before,
Ancestor, ship captain in Norway,
Pioneer in the prairie,
Single mother in the housing project,
Young child in the forest tribe,
All welcome ye on this feast day of the saints,
Where veil becomes thin between
Living and dead, and
Today more than ever we hear
Your voice, echo from the past
Sounding through these times
Generations forward, blood
Coursing through my veins
Just as it did the very same
Through yours. And together
We become each other’s bones and sinew
Flesh as one body, one earth, one soul
On this day that unites the living with the dead.–Maia Twedt, chaplain, contemporary
When you are ready, start the video/audio below.
(For written text of the above video click HERE.)
As you watch the wonderful music video which follows, you are invited to think about those who have been saints in your life and who live on in you.
After viewing the music video, you are invited to offer the following closing –
The saints have no need of honor from us; neither does our devotion add the slightest thing to what is theirs. Clearly, if we venerate their memory, it serves us, not them. But I tell you, when I think of them, I feel myself inflamed by tremendous yearning.
–Bernard of Clairvaux 1090-1153
Breathe. Breathe again. Be filled. With God. Extinguish your candle and engage whatever may come with a sense of peace and a desire to serve.
LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
- A Just Peace Church
An Open and Affirming Church
A Creation Justice Church - 2601 54th Avenue South, St Petersburg, FL 33712-4700
(727) 867-7961
see the Contact page for
map, personnel, and email addresses
The mission of Lakewood United Church of Christ, as part of the Church Universal, is to:
- Celebrate the presence and power of God in our lives and in our world;
- Offer the hospitality and inclusive love of Christ to all people;
- Work for God’s peace and justice throughout creation.
USEFUL LAKEWOOD LINKS DURING THE CORONA CRISIS:
- Corona Sabbath Posts
- Sermon and Reflection Texts
- Music at Lakewood
- Lakewood UCC YouTube Channel
- Lakewood UCC on Twitter
- Lakewood on Facebook
- Lakewood on Instagram
Lakewood United Church of Christ 