Halloween ushers us into a fall trilogy of feasts—All Hallows Eve, All Saints, and All Souls when the boundaries between this world and the next are erased and we celebrate the sacred connections with those who have gone before us in faith. The readings for this Sunday (31st Sunday of the Year) raise the question of how far are we from the Kingdom of God? The distance is measured in Love: love God and love our neighbor. We can take a cue from one of the season’s favorite cartoon characters, Linus, who sits and waits in the pumpkin patch for the arrival of the Great Pumpkin. While all of his friends are out and about trick or treating, Linus patiently waits, year after year, with active anticipating from the coming of the Great Pumpkin. It is this active stance of waiting and seeking to love God and one another that hastens the coming of the Kingdom.
