Yesterday, the day after Halloween, was All Saints’ Day — it’s celebrated on November 1. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and some others, it is observed on the first Sunday after Pentecost. Today is a day when all the saints are honored, especially those who do not have a day of their own. It’s also a family day to honor the memory of family members by visiting the resting place of deceased relatives and lighting candle in remembrance.
As the Roman Empire spread across Celt-occupied lands in the 1st century A.D., the Romand incorporated many of the Celtic traditions, including Samhain, from which the Halloween holiday developed. About 800 years later, the Roman Catholic Church further modified Samhain, and designated November 1 as All Saints’ Day.
All Saints’ Day isn’t the same as All Souls Day — Saints are those who are believed to have reached heaven. All Souls’ Day is dedicated to those who still have not reached heaven, and is celebrated today, November 2.
All Saints’ Day is often observed with a reading of the blessings listed by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount — among the eight blessing, probably the best known is “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth.”
Besides a day to commemorate the martyrdom of the saints in Heaven, it also serves an important day to bring people together….
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