All Saints' Day

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses..." --Hebrews 12:1

From antiquity the Church has celebrated the lives of individuals who led especially holy lives or who died because of their faith. At first saints or martyrs were simply celebrated on the day of their death, regarded as the day they entered a new and more joyful world. (Polycarp, pictured on the right, was one of the first Christians to be martyred by the Romans.)

However, by 400 AD there were so many martyrs--thanks to the Roman persecutions--that the calendar was full. St. John Chrysostom mentions a common day set aside to honor all saints and martyrs. By 800 AD the Church had Nov. 1 as All Saints Day, and today it's one of the major festivals of the Christian year.

(small digression: You may know that major Christian holidays, like Easter, Christmas, and Pentecost, all have "eve" days preceding them. Christmas Eve and Easter Even have special vigil services anticipating the major celebration on the next day. Keeping with tradition, the Church made October 31 the Eve/Vigil of All Saints. In England, All Saints' Day was also known as All Hallows', or Hallowmass, from the English word hallow. Thus October 31 became known as All Hallow's Eve, which was shortened to Halloween. Unfortunately, I don't know of any churches that actually hold the vigil service on October 31.)

Why remember saints at all? One reason is for encouragement: many saints overcame the same problems we face. Charles Simeon was mocked for being "evangelical" at college. C.S. Lewis struggled (and answered) several objections to Christianity. Paul lists a great catalogue of saints to encourage the Hebrews in faith, that they may "run with perseverance."

More importantly, saints point us to Christ. We may hear that God loves us despite our sins, but the lesson really sinks in when we read about Peter, who denied Christ yet was forgiven. The story of the Good Samaritan helps us understand how to love those in need. Likewise, the lives of saints illustrate the virtues of God.

Reading about the life of a saint need only take a few minutes. I encourage you to look up and read about a saint, give thanks to God for their life and ministry, and make their goodness your own.

"Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen." (from the Book of Common Prayer)

Readings and Other Resources

Readings for All Saints' Day (from textweek.com)

If you don't have a saint in mind, here are some I like (in addition to the ones listed above):
Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, and the Ecuador Martyrs
William Wilberforce
Catherine of Siena
William Tyndale

You can find short biographies of all of the above at http://elvis.rowan.edu/~kilroy/JEK/ There you'll also find a calendar if you want to read about saints regularly. InterVarsity Press also publishes many books on saints--email me if interested.