A saint is anyone who tries to live their life according to the way of God. The Church has always honored those who die in the Lord. The history of the Church is filled with stories of these people, some remembered throughout the ages, and some forgotten and never to be remembered again. They may be people we know right now and try to imitate. Some have been canonized or recognized by the Church; others have not been recognized but tried to live as God revealed he would like them to live. We honor them all on this day.
This feast that we call All Saints Day began as a feast of All Martyrs early in the Church’s history – the 4th Century. It came to be observed later on May 13 when Pope Boniface (608-615) rebuilt as a Christian church an ancient Roman Temple called the Pantheon or Temple of All Gods. The Church re-buried many martyrs here and dedicated the Church to the Mother of God and All the Holy Martyrs on May 13, 610.
About a hundred years later, Pope Gregory III converted a new chapel in the Basilica of St. Peter to all Saints (not just martyrs) and set the date of the feast on November 1. The vigil of this important feast, All Saint’s Eve, Hallowe’en, was apparently celebrated as early as the feast itself.
