All Saints & Souls
“The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God” (Wisdom 3:1a) are the opening words for The Wisdom of Solomon. This book, in the Apocrypha, offers consolation and counsel. The Apocrypha is a collection of books with dates of composition between 200 and 50 years before the birth of Jesus. This book composed around 100 BCE was likely written by an Alexandrian Jew. He attributed his book to King Solomon to improve its credibility among Jews enduring economic oppression and religious persecution. God revealed a truth and compelled the author to share it. This truth: God’s got you. Wisdom was written at a time when wealth and power were concentrated in the hands of a few while economic hardship and powerlessness were widespread. The problems faced by the people who read or heard The Wisdom of Solomon are similar to those confronting us today. High fuel and food costs, rising interest rates, and unaffordable rents are causing widespread hardship while a wealthy few park their mega yachts in the bay and demolish village homes to construct mansions planted with mature trees. Wisdom consoled and counseled its readers and us with these words:
The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God… In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be a disaster, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of others they are punished, their hope is full of immortality. … because (sic.) those who trust in God understand this truth, and those who are faithful abide in love with God, receiving and trusting God’s grace and mercy as God watches over them. (Wisdom 3:1-4, 9)
God’s got their backs.
Centuries later, the Apostle Paul wrote comparable consolation and counsel to the Christians in Thessalonica. Paul wrote not because they were suffering religious persecution and economic hardship, but because they were confused about death and afraid to die. The first generation of Christians believed Jesus’ return was imminent. Jesus said,
…I go and prepare a place for you, and I will come again and to take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. (John 14:3)
The first generation of disciples and believers thought Jesus would return before they died. When disciples and believers died, it confused and frightened them. What would happen to the disciples who died before Jesus’ return? What happened to everyone who died before the birth of Jesus? What would happen when they died? Paul responded to their confusion about death and fear of dying:
I do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. … and we who are alive… together to meet the Lord… so we will be with the Lord forever. …encourage one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14, 17-18)
God’s got you. In life and in death, God’s got your back. Wisdom and this letter to the Thessalonians testify to the same truth: God’s got you. Do not despair, God’s got your back. Dispel fear, clarify confusion, and foster faith. Telling every and anyone who will listen, God’s got you!
Have you known anyone who died and was resuscitated? My beloved friend and trusted colleague, The Reverend Sister Rosina Ampah, had not one, but two near death experiences. On both occasions she saw her body laying in the hospital bed as she conversed with God. She was thrilled to be with God and eager to see her departed loved ones: her son, parents, and people she mentored over a long career as a nun and priest. On both occasions God told her it was not her time to die and she returned to her body. Years before those near death experiences, Rosina encountered deceased loved ones. Eric, Rosina’s son, was murdered. The authorities had evidence of his death, but were unable to locate his body. A few weeks after Eric’s death, he came to Rosina in a dream and invited her to walk with him on a beach near their home. The next morning Rosina called the police and asked them to go to that beach. When they did, they found Eric’s body. Years later, when Rosina learned that her father was gravely ill, she made the long trip from the United States to Ghana. Because the drive to the village where her father lived was 6 hours from the airport and her plane landed late in the night, she stayed overnight in a hotel. Early the next morning the phone in her hotel room rang. When Rosina answered it was her father. He told her he loved her, and said he looked forward to seeing her. As Rosina dressed and prepared for the long drive the phone rang again. This time it was a member of her family calling to inform her that her father had died during the night.
The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God… In the eyes of the foolish they seem to have died…but they are alive, they are at peace. (Wisdom 3:1a, 2a, 3b)
God’s got you! “God is watching over your going out and your coming in from this time and forever more.” (The Book of Occasional Services, page 158, Service for the Blessing of a Home.) God’s got your back. Jesus said, “Even the hairs on our heads are numbered.” (Luke 12:7)
As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives and that at the last he will stand upon the earth. After my awaking, God will raise me up; and in my body I shall see God. (Book of Common Prayer, page 491)
God’s got my back. If this were not the case, Jesus would have told us. Jesus went before us to prepare a place for us so that where he is, we may also be. (John 14:2-3)
