Sunday, November 04, 2007

All Saints Day

In the United Methodist Church, as in a lot of other church denominations, the first Sunday in November is the time when we remember with reverence all of the members of our church who have passed away in the last year. That was such this morning.
At an appropriate time in our service, the lay leader of our congregation stepped forward and as he read from the list of names, one at a time, another member of our church rang a bell. As the names were read, family, friends, and any other person there who felt that the named person had somehow touched their lives, was asked to stand during the tolling of the bell, then they sat down before the next name was read. When my wife's name was read, I stood, but so did the rest of the congregation. What an honor to her. I was so deeply moved by this act of caring and love, that I just wanted to share it with you all. Not to be morbid, but rather, to be joyful!

Grace to you all!

JE

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

This does not suprise me in the least. Your beautiful wife (along with you) touch so many lives. She was a graceful lady.

A said...

It's not morbid at all. It's great to know your beloved wife touched the lives of so many.

Greyhound Girl said...

Oh dad that's so beautiful. I think I would've bawled my head off. i cried just reading it.