ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
November 3, 2025
Because of the way we do worship, with me running between services, I have not actually participated in the naming of the Saints in worship for five or six years. Though each year, I take the time to watch both services, specifically listening to the names that are spoken. Even though it is hours after the fact, I find it very emotional. There is something about speaking the name of someone who has passed from this life.
We hear their names—some whose stories we know and some whose stories were lived beyond our watch. We hear names spoken—each name representing a life interwoven with the lives of others. Death and grief and lostness are words that do not adequately communicate the depth of the pain that is felt, yet there is power in hearing a name spoken. O God of Many Names, your memory is eternal, and there is not a single name that escapes your grasp. As death leaves us feeling isolated, our faith reminds us that we are not forsaken, just as the one whose death we mourn is not forsaken. Continue to provide us hope and peace, gifts revealed in the Good News of Jesus Christ. This prayer is offered in gratitude to him. Amen.
