All Saints

All Saints' Day, All Souls' Day, & the Poor Souls in purgatory

Written by: Chris Rogers

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The Church calendar is full of martyrs, virgins, and heroic witnesses to the love of Jesus Christ. However, for every Saint Peter, Saint Agnes, or Saint Catherine of Siena, countless others have “run the race” and share in the beatific vision. All Saints' Day is an old feast.


All Saints day was originally intended to honor those who were killed for their faith. Martyrdoms had increased substantially during the time-period and a common day during the easter season was established to honor the holy men and women who gave their lives for Christ. Eventually, on November 1st, Saint Gregory III consecrated a chapel in honor of All Saints, located in the Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican City. November 1st became the fixed date for All Saints' Day to coincide with the chapel's anniversary.

All Saints Work Together

The “Communion of Saints” Doctrine is based on a concept from Saint Paul. Altogether we make up one body with Christ as the head. We don’t do anything on our own, we have Christ’s presence within us. But we also realize that through their intercessory prayer, the Saints, the “Church Triumphant,” assist us. We, the faithful here on earth, fight for salvation. Our title is the “Church Militant.” We intercede for each other through prayer and good works. We also pray for the “Church Suffering,” those in purgatory. Although they can’t pray for themselves, they can pray for us. Moreover, This beautiful union of the triumphant, the militant, and the suffering church reminds us of our hope in Christ and is beautifully highlighted on All Saints Day.

Allhallowtide

"Allhallowtide" is the title given to the season of remembrance and is made up of All Hallows' Eve, All Saints Day, and All Saints Day. Each day in this "Autumn Triduum" has unique traditions that help us remember our ultimate goal of reaching Heaven.

October 31st: All Hallows Eve

All Hallows Eve is more commonly known as "Halloween." 

  • “Hallow” means "holy" or “saint”
  • “E’en” is simply short for “evening"

So Halloween literally means the Eve of All Saints' Day - a vigil before one of the Church’s greatest feast days. We pause to remember the holy men and women who stood out as light in the darkness of our broken world. Read about the Catholic origins of Halloween here.

November 1st: All Saints' Day

November 1st should be used to reflect on the fleeting nature of our lives. We should be inspired by the great Saints canonized by the church. However, we should be even more encouraged by the fact that there are holy men and women who are unknown. These men and women are just as much Saints as the ones we know about. They may not have been martyred, or started a religious order, or written a theological masterpiece. However, they did maintain their friendship with God faithfully and obediently to the end - gaining themself a place in God's eternal embrace where we all hope to be one day.

November 2nd: All Souls' Day

"All souls' day" is celebrated on November 2nd. Since the eleventh century, the term “Holy Souls” has been used to describe those who are in purgatory and await their entrance into Heaven. While many describe purgatory as a place similar to hell, there are a couple of key differences. It is true that souls feel immense pain, but they are Heaven-bound and not under the clutches of the Devil. The suffering felt comes from their desire to be with God. We should remember these souls with charity and pray for them to be cleansed so they can finally go "home."

Pray for the Poor Souls in Purgatory

LIGHT A CANDLE in remembrance of your departed loved ones

PRAY that their souls might eternally rest in peace

REMEMBER them with memorial items so you don't forget to pray!

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