Pastor's Corner: When the saints go marching in

How is your Lent, your spiritual lead-up to Easter, going?

Over at First Lutheran and Messiah Lutheran, we've spent out midweek Lenten services exploring the lives of saints whose commemorations fall during March. You might be taken aback by Lutherans honoring saints. You might be thinking, "Isn't that more of a Catholic thing?"

It's true that Lutherans, and Protestants more generally, approach the idea of saints a bit differently than Catholics. And yet, in one of the founding documents of Lutheranism (known at that time as the Evangelical Church) called the Apology to the Augsburg Confession, the "founding fathers" are clear that all Christians are called to honor the saints. It says that we ought to "praise the saints themselves for faithfully using (their God-given gifts)."

According to the Apology to the Augsburg Confession, when we venerate the saints, we learn from their example, and we imitate their virtues. Engaging with the stories of the saints strengthens our faith. That was as true in Martin Luther's time as it is today. Our hymnbook, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, even lists the commemorations of saints in the very first section of the book.

It's also true that Lutherans and other Protestants have somewhat looser requirements for who "makes the cut." For example, on March 10, we honor Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, two women who risked their lives to undo the evils of American slavery. They remind us that our faith in Christ sets us apart to love fiercely, work for justice, and persevere with endurance even - and especially - when times get tough. Not being Catholic, Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth aren't about to be canonized by the Catholic Church anytime soon, but they still count as saints in our book. In Lent, as we contemplate Christ's selfless gift on the cross, these women show us how aspects of that same love continue to animate this world.

We do agree on some saints, though. Today, Protestants and Catholics recognize Saint Oscar Romero of San Salvador. Archbishop Romero was born in the mountains of El Salvador in Central America in 1917 and became the Archbishop of San Salvador in 1977. We remember him for being a defender of the poor and the underclass. Archbishop Romero became an outspoken critic of the government corruption, military abuse, and oppression of the Salvadorian people. He used his status to call the military and government to account for their greed and brutal atrocities.

But he wasn't always so vocal. He was timid at the start of his time as bishop, because he was worried that speaking out too forcefully would be too divisive, even if it was the just and right thing to do. As a pastor friend of mine once wrote, a peace brought about by silence, though, is no peace at all ...and Saint Romero eventually felt the weight of this deep truth.

During Mass on March 24, 1980, just as he was lifting up the bread during Holy Communion, Archbishop Romero was shot through the heart by a death squad. Archbishop Romero could have "played nice" with the people who controlled the death squads, but that's not what Jesus would do. It's not what we are called to do. In our baptism we pledge to strive for justice and peace in all the earth. We join with all the saints in hearing God's call and working for justice for all people. We hope that we never have to face a death squad like Oscar Romero, but whatever injustices we do face, we have these saints as models and mentors and beacons of light.

Sometimes, the saints who have the most to teach us are the men and women right around us. When the Greater Havre Area Ministerial Association gathers, I see a few saints sitting around that table, saints who have some important lessons in humility, love, gentleness, and self-control to teach me. It's the same when I look out at my congregation. Perhaps you know a few saints yourself. Maybe you're mourning one right now. The eccentric saints of the church teach us, encourage us, and bless us. The hymn has it right on: "Oh Lord, I want to be in that number, when the saints go marching in!"

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Pastor Megan Hoewisch

First Lutheran Church