And who was slain by a fierce wild beast?

Ignatius of Antioch

This is primarily for those who attend churches where All Saints Day (Nov. 1) will be observed this morning and will be asked to join their voices in, as Episcopalians sometimes do, a somewhat obscure hymn entitled, "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God." I guarantee that this will be the case at St. Andrew's --- it's a favorite of our rector, the Rev. Fred Steinbach.

The hymn is lovely and lively, but filled with English-isms and somewhat obscure references that can leave the uninitiated puzzled and perhaps should be accompanied by a guide. It actually was written for children's voices, but works nicely for adults, too.

I sing a song of the saints of God,
patient and brave and true,
who toiled and fought and lived and died
for the Lord they loved and knew.
And one was a doctor, and one was a queen,
and one was a shepherdess on the green:
they were all of them saints of God, and I mean,
God helping, to be one too.

They loved their Lord so dear, so dear,
and God’s love made them strong;
and they followed the right, for Jesus’ sake,
the whole of their good lives long.
And one was a soldier, and one was a priest,
and one was slain by a fierce wild beast:
and there’s not any reason, no, not the least,
why I shouldn’t be one too.

They lived not only in ages past;
there are hundreds of thousands still;
the world is bright with the joyous saints
who love to do Jesus’ will.
You can meet them in school, or in lanes, or at sea,
in church, or in trains, or in shops, or at tea;
for the saints of God are just folk like me,
and I mean to be one too.

A blogger named Pam McAllister provided much of the background here and also noted that in addition to remembering saints who have passed to glory, All Saints also honors the saints among us --- and encourages saintly aspiration.

McAllister wrote: "Asking 'What makes a saint,?' Barbara Brown Taylor, an Episcopal priest, answered: 'Extravagance. Excessive love, flagrant mercy, radical affection, exorbitant charity, immoderate faith, intemperate hope, inordinate love.'

"Joan D. Chittister, a Benedictine nun and feminist, calls saints 'role models of greatness… They give us a taste of the possibilities of greatness in ourselves.' "

The author of the hymn was Lesbia Scott (1898-1986) the wife of an Anglican priest and it's a little dated in places and obviously English.

She cites six role models for aspirational saints --- and here's where a guide sheet would come in in handy: "...one was a doctor (St. Luke), and one was a queen (Margaret of Scotland), and one was shepherdess on the green (Joan of Arc); "... one was a soldier (Martin of Tours), and one was a priest (John Donne), and one was slain by a fierce wild beast (Ignatius of Antioch).

There now, I hope this helps. Here's a rendition by the choir and congregation of the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, Kenmore, Washington: