We take risks when we choose to love. Inherent in loving is the reality, in fact, the necessity, of loss. On October 31, 2021, All Saints Day was near and mingled with Halloween and Dia de los Muertos. When we focus intensely on death and our loved ones, no long among us physically, we consciously face not only the fact of death but the way death can make both life more precious and the act of love more daring. As Yehuda HaLevi wrote long ago: “It is a holy thing to love what death will touch.” “To remember this brings painful joy.” Here’s a sermon based on based on John 16.16-22 and a poem by Yehuda HaLevi.

1.

To live is to risk.

To love is to take a chance.

Life and death walk hand in hand, whether we like it or not. . . .