Psalm 146, Mark 6:45-53 ansd Revelation 20:1-6
Halloween is second only to Christmas in commercial sales for a holiday! Costumes, food, candy, party items, and “scary” movies have an amazing appeal! And for it to fall on a Sunday seems be in stark contrast to what most Sunday worship centers upon!
Yet, Halloween is All Saints Eve! All Saints Day is Nov 1 and it is a day to remember all the Saints, the dear departed of the faith. How the day before became Halloween has a long history and is indeed connected to certain aspects of the. Christian faith. Death and our human mortality for instance.
Our three texts key in on our very finite limited existence as well as God’s intention to have the Last Word on human creation those made a “little lower than the angels.”
The Psalmist is very direct about death as “the end of all our planning.” But Revelation points to God’s Big Picture using colorful images of Hope. The Mark text reveals some notion of first century thoughts about visions, assumptions about post mortem existence, and some ways of expressing the mystery of human Being.
The sermon will explore how much of Biblical thought about life and death has made its way into popular culture in ways both good and not so good. Halloween even with its emphasis on “fun” can be confusing and misleading when trying to come to grips with our mortal life and our Eternal Life.
No wonder the Church has had an uneasy relationship with Halloween for many generations! We can see the fun kids have but also consider the deeper thoughts and feelings that lie behind both Halloween and All Saints Eve.
Blessings in your prayerful consideration of both church life and our popular culture we move in and out of each day!
Pastor Barry †