What Is a Saint?

November 7, 2004

The Rev. Dr. Anthony J. Godlefski, Pastor

Montgomery United Methodist Church

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, good morning! I want to talk with you this morning about this question: What is a saint? We’re celebrating All Saints Day. We’ve heard of churches named after saints; we’ve heard of people called saints; but what is a saint?

Let’s take a look at that today. I’d like to begin by telling you a little story I heard that I hope with all my heart is not true. But it seems there were two brothers who lived in a certain town. They were not very nice fellows at all. They swindled people out of a lot of money. They ran the town government. And they made people very unhappy.

Well, one day one of the brothers died. The remaining brother went to the local minister and said, “Reverend, we’ve never been to your church, but I’d like you to do my brother’s funeral. And I tell you what – I know you have a building fund going, and I’ll donate fifty thousand dollars to your building fund if you will say that my brother was a saint.”

The minister had a problem. He said he’d do it, but he needed to have the money upfront. So the brother agreed. On the day of the funeral, the church was packed with smiling townspeople, and the minister began. He said exactly what the brother had done, how difficult a person he’d been, and what a challenge he’d been to everybody. The townspeople were nodding and smiling in agreement. The brother was getting angrier and angrier; he didn’t know what the minister was going to do. The minister continued, telling the truth about everything that had happened. The brother was on the edge of his seat, thinking about the deal he’d made with the minister.

Finally, the minister came to the end of his sermon. He said, “Yes, all these things about this gentleman are true. But compared to his brother, this man was a saint!”

What is a saint? You might want to say to me, “Pastor, I’m not like that brother, but I’m no saint, either.” Why do we say that? Do we think that a saint is some image of absolute perfection, someone who goes around with hands folded all the time, someone who never makes a mistake? Is that what a saint is?

Or is a saint something else? In the Roman Catholic Church, the church from which our denomination sprang, and in the Episcopal Church, there is a class called “formal saints.” These are the saints we’ve heard of, like St. Matthias or St. Barnabas or St. Augustine. Who are these people?

Well, the church council would meet after a certain person had died, and they’d say, “This person was such a good example of being a Christian and was so close to God, surely he must be in heaven.” Then these people are declared saints and get the “St.” in front of their names.

Furthermore, they are granted a special feast day or festive day, usually their birthdays. For instance, if you’ve ever heard of St. Stephen, his feast day is December 26. So December 26 is the Feast of Stephen. There got to be so many saints that we ran out of days in the year for them. And the church decided to honor them all on All Saints Day, and that’s how we got the day that we celebrate today.

The church went one step further and assigned saints to certain jobs. Joseph, for instance, was a carpenter, and he became the patron saint of carpenters and real estate folks. I’ve even heard of good Protestant people who’ve performed that little ritual of burying the statue of St. Joseph in the backyard when they wanted to sell their house. Some of you have heard of this.

And St. Anthony of Padua is the patron saint of lost objects. Having a little conversation with him, some say, can help. Jude is the patron saint of hopeless causes; you may have seen personal ads in the newspaper, “Thank you, St. Jude, for helping me with my prayer request.”

Truthfully, I don’t think that’s so bad, really, because I think that when we go to heaven, God still has work for us. I don’t think heaven is a static place. I think that God has things for us to do on the other side that we could never dream of on this side.

But let’s come back to the question of what is a saint. Even Methodists acknowledge saints. Take a look in your hymnal with me at number 481. Across the top of the page it says “The Prayer of St. Francis,” a great man of God.  It begins,

“Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

And where there is sadness, joy.”

These are the words of a saintly person, a person connected to God. Now look, please, at page 875, our funeral ritual. “Receive her into the arms of Your mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of the saints of light.” The saints are gathered together, and there is a connection between saints and light.

What’s it about? What does it all mean? Friends, I think the definition that a little boy gave is a good one. The little boy knew saints only as portraits in the stained glass windows of his church, and he said that a saint is someone who lets the light shine through.

 A saint is simply someone who lets the light shine through, who in all their humanness lets some aspect of God shine through his or her eyes to other people. That’s what a saint is. A saint is a light-bringer. A saint is a person who lets the light shine through. Doesn’t that cast a different light on it? You don’t have to be that perfect person pictured with hands folded prayerfully in a stained glass window. You don’t have to be like that to be a saint. A saint is a person who lets the light of Jesus Christ shine through, the light of the greatest light-bringer of all time.

In this morning’s gospel, Luke 6:20-31, Jesus said to the down-trodden people, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep; you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you and exclude you and revile you for my sake; rejoice and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven.” Jesus was the greatest bringer of light and hope to folks. He invites you and me to join Him.

A saint is somebody who lets the light shine through. We have our traditional saints; we talked about them. We have our personal saints, those folks whom we remember who have gone to heaven to be with the Lord but who let His light shine through for us. Who are they for you? Are they dear ones, parents and grandparents, teachers and friends who gave you a glimpse of the Kingdom in their eyes? They were able to break through the bonds of their humanness and let God’s light shine through, my friends.

Oh, I have so many friends up there now. Can I just tell you about a few? Matt Hunter was a member of the Wesley United Methodist Church in Roselle, my first full-time charge. I still see his sparkling blue eyes and his impish smile. He told this green new pastor, “Ah, Pastor, everything’s gonna work out okay. Oh, now, the church is struggling so much, Pastor, but just have faith. We’ll work on it together. Everything will work out okay.” I cried so when he died. I remember him still. He brought me a vision and a glimpse of the Kingdom.

My sister Angie – if it weren’t for her, we wouldn’t have had Christmas celebrations in my house. We wouldn’t have had photos that I cherish so much to this day. I might not have been introduced to classical music or to poetry or to the library if it weren’t for my sister Angie, now gone to the Lord. How she let the light shine!

Who are they for you? Who are your personal saints? I know they are near you, nearer than you think.

And there are living saints who are among us, around you, behind you, before you, to your right and to your left, who bring the light of God to you. I think of them – I think of you – who break through the bonds of humanness and bring the special light of God’s faith and God’s love to me and to each other.  Oh, there are saints all around, whether you are walking or running, whether you are wheelchair-bound or hospital-bed-bound, the light can shine through you.

Can I tell you about Joyce Fuss? Joyce is a patient at the Roosevelt Extended Care Center in Edison. She has been there for ten years in that bed. My singing group and I visit her every time we go to Roosevelt. Joyce is surrounded by stuffed animals and pictures, including a picture of her departed soldier husband. Her light shines so brightly that even from a hospital room the light of Christ shines from her. Across from her bed there is a picture of Christ, beautifully done, and framed by one of the other patients in the hospital. She pointed it out the other day when I went to see her, and she said, “Oh, we love Him, don’t we?” And I said, “Yes, Joyce, we do.” The light shines through her.

And the light shines through you, my friend. Be not afraid of the title “saint.” Or, if you prefer “light-bringer,” claim it. You are the light-bringers in this world; you are the saints of God. It’s All Saints Day; it’s your day. Claim it as your own.  Be like one of the bright lights in the night sky that brings God’s light to others. You can do it. Christ needs you, and there’s nothing more fulfilling in life than doing that. Happy Light-Bringers Day! Happy All Saints Day to you. It’s your day. Rejoice and be glad. God loves you. I do, too. Have a wonderful week. Amen.