All Saints Day – Nov 1

“But to me, exceedingly honorable are Thy friends, O Lord” (Ps. 138: 16).

All Saints Day is a Universal Christian Feast that honors and remembers all Christian Saints. The friends of God, who have gone to the other side of the veil are commemorated, with much reverence. In the early Church, Christians would acknowledge the anniversary of a martyr’s death at the place of martyrdom. Sometimes, groups of martyrs suffered death together on the same day. This gave rise to larger commemorations. Over time, the Holy Church, feeling that every martyr should be venerated, appointed a common day for all. This practice is believed to be the origin of All Saints Day. This commemoration probably began as the Sunday of Synaxis of All Martyrs. Then to them were added all the ranks of ‘Martyr’ Saints who bore witness, to Christ in manifold ways.

The saints are our ancestors on earth and we Christians experience a strong sense that the saints are still with us, and that they watch over us and pray to God for us. They are members of Christ’s Church and we use this day to give thanks for the lives of all the saints as they are examples to us for their unique contributions and sacrifices, and acknowledges their continued spiritual presence in the lives of people today. They are the ones who fought the fight, won the battle and received the eternal glory. We reverently honor the blessed and righteous, Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Shepherds, Teachers, and Holy Monks, who have been added to the choirs of the Saints, from the time of Adam who have been perfected in piety and have glorified God by their holy lives. Saints are the product of steadfast love for Christ, refined by trials and tribulations, suffering pain and perils and purified and purged by fire of the Holy Spirit.

All Saints is a day to remember, thank God for, and also to venerate and pray to the saints in heaven for various helps. This day is observed by remembering and thanking God for all saints, both dead and living. It is a day to glorify Jesus Christ, who by His holy life and death has made the saints holy through Baptism and faith. Therefore, guided by the teaching of the Divine Scriptures and Apostolic Tradition, we honor all the Saints, the friends of God, for they are keepers of God’s commandments, shining examples of virtue, and benefactors of mankind. This is the feast that we celebrate today. It is the harvest of the coming of the Holy Spirit into the world; the ‘much fruit’ brought forth by that ‘Grain of wheat that fell into the earth and died’ (Jn. 12: 24). The glorification of the Saints is ‘the foundation of the Church, the perfection of the Good News of Christ, they who fulfilled in deed the sayings of the Savior’

Icon of the Sunday of All Saints

The icon of the ‘Sunday of All Saints’ depicts our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ seated above the throne of heaven surrounded by the Saints.  The rows of Saints included the Archangel Michael and other Angels, the Theotokos and John the Baptist, the Apostles, Bishops, Great Martyrs, Ascetics and Monastics.  To the side of the throne are Adam and Eve, bowing in reverence to Christ.  They are joined by the Saints, who are lifting their hands in worship to the King of Glory.  At the lower left of the icon is the Patriarch Abraham who has a righteous soul in his bosom, as told in the story of Lazarus and the rich man in the Gospel.  At the lower center is the Good Thief who was crucified with Christ.  On the lower right is the Patriarch Jacob.

Many religious traditions within and beyond Christianity have designated special days where not only unique saints and martyrs are venerated, but also common ancestors are honored and remembered in special ways and recognized for their on-going connection and influence in the actual lives of families and communities. we honor on this day, setting their life before us as an example of virtue, and entreating them to intercede in our behalf with God, Whose grace and boundless mercy be with us all. Amen.

The King and Psalmist Prophet David says, “But to me, exceedingly honorable are Thy friends, O Lord” (Ps. 138: 16). And the Apostle Paul, recounting the achievements of the Saints, and setting forth their memorial as an example that we might turn away from earthly things and from sin, and emulate their patience and courage in the struggles for virtue, says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every burden, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (Heb. 12: 1).