Solemnity of All Saints
The Feast of All Saints has a very long and interesting history. Whereas the exact origin of this feast is unclear, it is believed that it began organically at the end of the Christian persecution around 312 CE. Not only did the conversion of Constantine bring respite to the Christians but it also gave them the opportunity to look back and honor the martyrs and exemplars of faith. The church had a growing desire to honor the great number of martyrs, especially, those who were martyred during the long and brutal Diocletian persecution (303-311 CE). If the early church had to commemorate each of these martyrs individually, there would not be enough days in the calendar year. A common feast day for all saints, therefore, seemed appropriate, if not inevitable.
The earliest mention of the Feast of All Saints is found in the preaching of St. Ephrem (d. 373) and St. John Chrysostom (d. 407). On May 13, 609 CE, Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon at Rome to the Virgin Mary and all the martyrs and in this way also established the formal celebration of All Saints. Later, in the mid-Eighth century, Pope Gregory III made All Saints a holy day and fixed November 1 as the date for the celebration. Today, the meaning of the feast is expanded to include all those people who have entered heaven. It includes all the saints in the Church’s official cannon and those who are not. It is a feast of all believers who stand face-to-face with God in heaven. Among them are people from our own families, our own parish, our towns and neighborhoods, our relatives and our friends.
This Feast is both a celebration and invitation. In three points, let me reflect on the deeper meaning and practical implications of this feast.
- A celebration of God’s Love. “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are” (I Jn 3:1-3). First and foremost, the Feast of All Saints is a celebration of God’s love - a love that makes us “children of God.” In reality, we can say that the Feast of All Saints is the culmination of the history of salvation. The vision that John describes in today first reading – a large number of people standing before the throne of God crying out, “Salvation comes from our God, who is seated on the throne, and from the lamb,” – is precisely how salvation history is meant to conclude. Salvation, from the Christian perspective, is an act of supreme love by God, who is love (I Jn 4:8). It is accomplished in and through the life of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. In and through Christ, the Son, we are adopted as God’s sons and daughters – God’s beloved children. On the Feast of All Saints we celebrate this reality. The feast, however, is also an invitation. It is an invitation to live our newfound identity as children of God. We are not an aimless people wandering through life without an identity or destiny. Christ is our identity, our life on earth is a pilgrimage, and our destiny is eternal life with God and with our brother and sisters.
- God’s People All. John’s vision in the book of Revelation is very relevant for our times. He saw a great multitude which no one could count “from every nation, race, people, and tongue” (Rev 7:9). The idea that in the first century, at a time of brutal persecution, John would see a vision of heaven comprising of people from every nation, race, people, and tongue is indeed mesmerizing. This is what is mesmerizing – that heaven mirrors the earth, or should we say, earth mirrors heaven. How terribly narrow-visioned we have to be to imagine a world that excludes, rejects, oppresses, and kills people for their differences. Racism, culture wars, ethnic cleansing, discrimination based on a nationality, race, culture, and language is not just a crime against humanity, but also an offence against God and heaven. This is why I consider Pope Francis’ call for “social friendship” and “fraternity” in his latest encyclical Fratelli Tutti to be truly prophetic. Pope Francis says, “Social friendship and universal fraternity call for an acknowledgement of the worth of every human person, always and everywhere” (FT, 106). His call is not just a call for a new social order, rather, it is a call to be God’s universal people. The Feast of All Saints, then, is a celebration of the universal nature of God’s people both in heaven and on earth. It is also is an invitation to envision an earth the mirrors the universality of God’s heaven. May we not be found wanting in this regard. More importantly, may we not be guilty of destroying God’s vision of a universal heaven and earth.
- Beatitudes: The Life of Saints. The most meaningful idea behind the Feast of All Saints is the fact that it celebrates all those who are God’s presence and not merely of those who the Church canonically upholds as saints. This includes us too! We may not enjoy the beatific vision now, but we have the privilege and opportunity to be in the real presence of Christ. In fact, every Eucharist is a celebration of saints. Often, though, we think of saints as extraordinary people with extraordinary virtues and superhuman heroism. The gospel way of looking at saints is just a little different. Sainthood is not trophy we set out to accomplish. We don’t become saints at the end of our lives. We live the life of saints in the here and now. For this, we don’t necessarily have to do heroic things. As Mother Teresa said, “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” The Beatitudes is precisely the way of saints – the “little way” to becoming saints. To be poor in spirit, the ability to mourn with other, to be meek, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, to be peacemakers, and to be willing to pay the price for righteousness – this is the life of the saints. If this Mass is a celebration of saints, then this upcoming week is God’s invitation to live the life of saints no matter where we find ourselves. As the election winds up and the results are out, let us live out the beatitudes! If we can do that, we are well on the way to sainthood.
As we come into God's holy presence in this Eucharist, we believe that this is a taste of eternity. We are people of many races, nations, and tongue in this very space glorifying God with one heart and mind. May our celebration of all saints as we hope to be with all the saints one day in heaven. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph