All Saints Day

After Halloween yesterday, today is All Saints Day.  Tomorrow is All Souls Day.  All three of these holidays had significant meaning and ritual in the early Christian church as well as other religions.  Since all three of these events are so closely intertwined, it made sense to lightly touch on all of them at once.  All Saints Day is designed to commemorate the saints of the church, whether canonized by the church or held in high esteem by the faithful following.  Many of the saints are obvious: St. Paul, St. John, St. Augustine, Mother Theresa, and the list could go on.  (Recently the Pope canonized Junipero Serra as a saint.)  Other saints are lesser known, possibly people who have greatly touched our own personal lives never to be seen again.  According to scripture, any one who believes in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is a saint.  The question is, do we live as such?  The internal change wrought from a relationship with Christ will cleanse and change our outward behavior.  All in all, today, and hopefully every day, is dedicated to remembering the saints of the church.  All Souls Day is to commemorate the faithful departed, people who are followers of Jesus who have passed from this realm to the next.  I could list many people who have impacted my life who are no longer in this earthly realm but have passed on in to eternity with God.  Personally I strive to make an impact or difference in the lives of those around me by telling the Truth and by becoming a vanguard against the ever-changing winds of relativism and situational ethics.  In doing so, I remain faithful to the calling of the Lord Jesus.  Happy All Saints and Souls Day!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Party on the Porch (Amon Carter Museum)

On Saturday, September 30th, I attended the annual Party on the Porch sponsored and hosted by the Amon Carter Museum.  I attended this function about twelve years ago with a friend and his family.  For whatever reason, the festivities fell off my radar till I saw a banner for it a few weeks prior.  Deciding it would be good for me to get out, even if it was alone, I requested a ticket and downloaded it to my phone.  The best part of the shin-dig was it's free of charge!  Yes, you read that correctly.  Both Party on the Porch and the Museum itself are funded by a perpetual trust established upon the death of Amon Carter himself.  (Take that, you other museums who charge an entrance fee!  Because of the lack of admission, I am able to frequent the art gallery as often as I can.)  Free parking for the event was available across the street at the surface lots of the Health Science Center.  (Another plus to showing up for the event.)  There were several people managing the entryway.  On
Read more

Seeking Closure!

Last week I was able to get away from the land of exile in order to visit and spend time with family.  Even though part of our plans for a trip to East Texas fell apart, I very much enjoyed spending three wonderful days with my mother in Yoakum.  During this time, as she still had to work her shifts at the church, I was able to scratch off quite a few items from the bucket list.  Many of these items have been on there for several years awaiting much-needed closure.  On top of the list, but really in no particular order, was to visit the Alchoholics Anonymous group in Victoria where I tried to get sober in 2004.  Even though I didn't recognize anyone in attendance, I did enjoy the time spent in fellowship.  Then a visit was made to Memory Gardens Cemetery where three acquaintances are interred.  One in particular, my friend Amy, was buried there in 2021.  Regretting not being able to attend her funeral services, I made every effort to locate her grave, along with the graves of her m
Read more

Reprieve from the War Front

** This is another letter from my father in Korea during the war of 1950-1953.  My intention in posting these letters is to capture the very personal side of war.  The letter is typed as written.  Any mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and etc. are intentional. 17-Oct-53 Dear Mom & Dad           I have just returned from a splendid seven days leave in Japan.  My seven days were filled with just about everything a person could want in a leave.  Steak, lobster, french fried potatoes, and onions, and many other fried foods.  The special service hotel at which I stayed is the most beautiful in Tokyo, Ga-Jo-En KANKO Hotel.  It is composed of three buildings connected by hallways, five stories high.  It has many facilities such as Grill, Bar, Cocktail Lounge, PX, Game Room, Barber Shop, Dining Room, Wrapping Service, and Dining Room, where meals are very cheap: 15 cent breakfast, 25 cent lunch, 45 cent supper.  The elevators of the Hotel are lined with mother-of-pearl formed into wa
Read more