A Compendium of Sources
Commemorating All Saints’ Day
While many Christians ignore Halloween or else
choose to celebrate a fall festival, they can only take back this day from
popular culture by putting it in its proper perspective, connecting it to All
Saints’ Day, November 1st—a day of Solemnity for the Anglican and
Roman Catholic churches. Protestants also
observe All Saints Day the Sunday following Halloween as a day to memorialize
all believers, most particularly those in individual congregations who have
died during the previous year. Even so,
in the United States, except among Mexican-Americans and the Cajuns of
Louisiana, most Christians don’t mark this day with any activities outside of
attending church services. However,
perhaps it’s time to resurrect some old customs.
A History of All Saints’ Day:
Roman
Catholic & Anglican Traditions
All Saints Day. (2013). Catholic Online. Retrieved from http://catholic.org/saints/allsaints/
This well-researched link summarizes Roman Catholic,
Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant celebrations of All Saints’ Day, detailing its
history as well as explaining the All Saints Day traditions of different
countries around the world. Catholic
Online even provides a bibliography for the Web site.
The Roman Catholic and Anglican (or Episcopal)
churches celebrate November 1st as a day to thank God for the lives
of all saints both known and forgotten. Western
Europe first widely celebrated the day in 837, although the Church earlier
commemorated unknown martyrs. With the
Reformation, Protestants extended the idea of saints to mean all believers [although
modern-day Roman Catholic commentary explains that they too are a part of this
celebration]. Many Protestant
denominations celebrate the unity of the church on this day or the nearest
Sunday after it (All Saints’, 2013, para.1).
All Saints. (2010). Women for Faith & Family. Libreria Edifice Vaticana. Retrieved
from http://www.wf-f.org/AllSaints.html
All Saints Day serves as a memorial day for Roman
Catholics, who honor the memory of those souls “who have died and gone before
us in the presence of the Lord” (Women, 2010, para. 6). Observant Roman Catholics attend Mass on this
holy day, but the Women for Faith and
Family Web site additionally suggests that parents use this day as an
opportunity to talk to children about the importance of saints as well as to
read scriptures that underline why Christians should observe this day (Women,
2010, para. 12).
All Saints Day, kept as a Holy Day of Obligation, also
goes by the names of All Hallows, Hallowmas, or Halloween. However, since the day was first celebrated
on November 1 in Germany, Bennett, as opposed to other commentators, believes
that this makes its historic connection with the Celtic Harvest festival of Samhain “unlikely” (Bennett, 2013, para.
1 & 10) even as many of the customs associated with Halloween stem from the
idea that evil has less power if believers mock it (Bennett, 2013, para.
10). Trick or Treat, for example, begin
in the Middle Ages when households distributed “soul cakes” to beggars, who
upon return, had to agree to pray for departed souls (Bennett, 2013, para.
10).
The following recipe and its accompanying text explain
how the giving out of soul cakes during the Middle Ages was most probably the
origin of trick-or-treating. Since 200 Celsius converts to 392 Fahrenheit,
Americans should set their oven temperatures just shy of 400 F.
After listing several scripture readings that honor
all saints, Escobar notes that All Saints’ Day became a “contentious issue”
when the Church went from venerating the saints to worshipping them (Escobar,
2009, para. 2). Modern-day Christians,
however, receive the calling to be a part of the community of saints since all
Christ’s followers may claim the title of saint, and by their acts of kindness
may like those who came before them give witness of their faith (Escobar, 2009,
para. 3-6).
This feast day originally took place in the spring,
dating back to the time that Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon as a
Christian Church in A.D. 608, and in turn, Gregory IV consecrated the Chapel of
St. Peter. However, since Rome didn’t
have enough food at the end of the winter to feed all the pilgrims the date was
moved to November 1st, after the autumn harvest (Fournier, 2010,
para. 2-3). At this time, Medieval
European housewives dispensed cakes, later known as donuts, with a hole in the
middle of them as a symbol of eternity to beggars as well as baked apple dishes
(Fournier, 2010, para. 4). The nearest modern-day equivalent of this Medieval
celebration in the Americas occurs in Mexico where on the Day of the Dead,
families visit cemeteries, decorating tombs and leaving food offerings for the
dead (Fournier, 2010, para. 5).
The Roman Catholic Church observes November 1st
as a day of solemnity to honor all saints, known and unknown (Mershman, 1907,
para. 1). By the 4th century,
Christians in neighboring dioceses were beginning to hold joint feasts to
commemorate martyrs, and by 609 or 610, the Church had set aside May 13th
to honor all saints. Pope Gregory IV, however, moved the day to November 1st
(Mershman, 1907, para. 2).
While Anglicans and Roman Catholics celebrate All
Saints' Day as a time to remember all saints and martyrs by attending church services
and “trying not to do any servile work” (BBC, 2011, para. 1-2), they observe
November 2nd as All Soul’s Day, attending Masses where they pray for souls in
Purgatory--a state of those not entirely cleanse of their venial, or minor,
sins. Odilio, the Abbot of Cluny, first
set aside a feast day for praying for those in Purgatory in A.D. 998, but by
the 10th century, the entire Roman Catholic Church had adopted this custom
(BBC, 2011, para.3-7). All Souls’ Day Rituals include the reading of The Office
of the Dead, holding Requiem Mass for the dead, and visiting the grave sites of
family members. Mexicans and
Mexican-Americans celebrate the Day of the Dead, or El Día de los Muertos, whereupon the faithful visit the graves of
family members, leaving food for the departed (BBC, 2011, para. 6).
Saunders notes that superstitious beliefs during the
Middle Ages along with influences from Celtic paganism have obscured the true
meaning of the three days that the Christian Church has set aside to memorialize
the dead (Saunders, 2003, para. 6).
Christians first set aside a day to commemorate the lives of saints in
the spring—Edessa celebrated this feast day May 13th while Syria Christians memorialized the dead the
Friday after Easter, and the Church of
Antioch, remembered the lives of all saints the first Sunday after
Pentecost (Saunders, 2003, para. 2). The
celebration took on more universal, or catholic, significance when it moved to
Rome after Pope Boniface IV consecrated the once pagan Pantheon to St. Mary and
the Christian martyrs on May 13, 609.
However, it fell to Pope Gregory IV to move the Feast Day of All Souls
to November 1st when he dedicated St. Peter’s Basilica in 731. By 735, the English were observing this feast
day as Venerable Bede noted (Saunders, 2003, para. 4). This feast day, however, also coincided with
the Celtic harvest festival of Samhain—a
time when the Druids built bonfires of sacred oak branches on which they
performed sacrifices (Saunders, 2003, para. 4).
Protestant All Saints’ Day
Beliefs
Most mainline Protestant denominations observe All
Saints’ Day either on November 1st or else on the first Sunday after
Halloween as they honor the contributions of heroes of the faith and recommit
themselves to Christian service as they usually also recognize members of their
congregations who have died in the past year.
While individual congregations of evangelical Christians may mark All
Saints’ Day, Baptists and other evangelicals don’t officially set aside a specific
day to honor the lives of Christians who might serve as role models for the
living. Protestants, of course, don’t
believe in the intercession of the saints as Roman Catholics and Anglicans or
Episcopalians do.
All Saints’ Day honors all faithful Christians,
although it had its origins in the Roman Catholic Church of the Middle
Ages. While the traditional date for All
Saints’ Day is November 1st, it is also celebrated the first Sunday
in November (Questions, n. d., para. 1-2).
“Saint” in its Protestant context means all baptized believers
(Questions, n. d., para. 4). According
to the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Lutherans honor saints to give
thanks for all the teachers and leaders God has given the Church, to strength
the faith, and to imitate the virtues of early Christians (Questions, n. d.,
para. 4).
Following the reformed tradition established by John
Calvin, not only do Presbyterians give thanks for the lives of devoted
Christians who have died, but they also emphasize the “ongoing sanctification
of the whole people of God” by observing all Saints Day on the first Sunday in
November. Thus, the Presbyterian Church urges members to live the type of life
that gives witness to God’s grace (All Saints Day, n. d., Presbyterian Mission,
para. 2).
Baptists don’t officially celebrate All Saints Day,
but many individual Baptist churches celebrate the Sunday before Halloween as
Reformation Sunday (LaGuardia, 2007, para. 7), and many like Joe LaGuardia recognize that Halloween—detached from all
Saints Day and religious tradition-- has become “a cultural quagmire of the
superstitious and the sacred” (2007, para. 3).
LaGuardia goes on to note that just as the Roman Catholic Church
attempted to substitute All Saints Day observances for an original Celtic
harvest festival, Protestant reformers in Germany made October 31st
Reformation Day (2007, para. 5). Even
so, he also suggests that the Halloween season remains a time to remember both
the famous and unrecognized heroes of the Christian faith whether they are
Mother Teresa or Grandpa (LaGuardia, 2007, para. 10).
United Methodists celebrate All Saints’ Day on
November 1st, although they don’t believe that departed saints act
as mediators between Christians and God.
However, they do believe that all confessing Christians are saints since
they exemplify the Christian life (Peck, 2007, para. 4). The founder of the Methodist Church, John Wesley,
taught that still living Christians can learn much from those who have died,
but unlike the Anglican Church, from which the Methodist Church separated,
Methodists like their Presbyterian and Lutheran brethren don’t seek their
intercession on behalf of sinners (Peck, 2007, para. 7).
Keeping All Saints’ Day:
From
the Ridiculous to the Sublime
While Roman Catholics and Anglicans/Episcopalians ask
saints to serve as intermediaries between themselves and God, and Protestants
pray to God directly, all Christians can teach Christian traditions and spur
the faithful to lead lives in service to others by observing All Saints’ Day. Hence, while some ideas found Online apply
only to the Roman Catholic celebration of All Saints day, Protestants are
increasingly recognizing the value of observing this feast day as a call for
renewal while Roman Catholics and Anglicans have come to recognize that all
Christians can use this day as a time to emulate the lives of Christian heroes.
Accordingly, all followers of might benefit by observing that each Christian is
called to use his or her unique spiritual gifts to help others.
Beal believes that All Saints’ Day activities if
conducted properly can teach children and young adults about the symbology of
the Church, so she has come up with several meaningful activities: For example, children can participate in a
procession marching behind banners they have created symbolizing their favorite
saints, and they can take part in a scavenger hunt, locating items associating
particular saints with a particular location within the church; for instance,
items associated with St. Cecelia might be found in the choir loft, and items associated with St. John the Baptist
might be found near the baptism font (Beal, n. d., para. 1-3).
In the weeks leading up to All Saints’ Day, youth groups might come up with
their own “saints”, identifying contemporary Christians who help others deal
with problems like bullying. The entire
congregation might also take an All Saints’ quiz to familiarize themselves with
well-known saints (Beal, n. d., para. 4-5).
Bourque's
activities honoring saints help favorite saints, although some observant
Catholics may find them sacrilegious: For instance, Bourque suggests making a
game of tossing glow stick “halo” bracelets over statues of saints and matching
names of saints and their images glued on poker chips, although learning about
the lives of saints is certainly a way to memorialize the dead (2013, para.
2). She also suggests that children make
felt doll and paper bag puppets to present saints’ plays and that children
make sugar cookies, decorating them with the images of their favorite saints
(2013, para. 2-4).
Readers of Bourque’s link that seeks to teach children the names and
images of saints might appreciate this link:
Guide recommends including all family members in
writing or revising the family’s personal litany, inserting the names of saints
that are particularly appropriate choices to serve as role models and
intercessors (para. 2, 2010): She suggests starting out with the confirmation
or saint names for family members and then adding the names of saints that have
a special meaning for the family; for
example, the name of the church which
the family attends and/or the city where the family lives might furnish the
name of a favorite saint while the family might also include the names of
saints associated with particular locations and causes (Guide, 2012, para.
4-5). Guide associates this with charism (2012, para. 4), or the
theological concept that God gives spiritual gifts to each Christian to help
others (1 Corinthians 12: 8-10).
The Web sites below will help family members come up
with saints to include in their own personal litany:
Who knew that Our Lady of the Annunciation is the
patron saint of Texas?
Sachteleben suggests using religious medals, saint
statues, and rosary beads as favors for those children who participate (2010,
para. 1). Children can dress as their
favorite bible character or saint, play BINGO with SAINT [not saints since the board needs to match the
same number of spaces that the word BINGO does] written across the top, play
musical chairs to the tune of “When the Saints Come Marching In”, or
participate in an All Saints Cakewalk. Younger children can color or play with
saint paper dolls (Sachteleben, 2010, para. 2-5).
Ethnic Celebrations of All
Saints’ Day
Incorporating ethnic celebrations of All Saints’ Day
into American life can also help integrate All Saints’ Day back into popular
culture. While families may not be able
to visit grandmother or granddad’s grave on this day, they can incorporate Colcannon, strietzel, Ossi di Morto
cookies, and boniatillo and
pannellets dishes into their All Saints’ Day menu choices, decorate using
traditional All Saints’ Day white or yellow flowers as well as candles, and
lanterns instead of Halloween-themed decorations, reminiscence about departed
family members, and perhaps most importantly understand that once upon a time
Halloween was not the major emphasis of this holy day season. Thus, Christian parents, whether they are Roman
Catholics, Episcopalians, or mainline or evangelical Protestants, need to set
aside the time to explain Christian traditions as well as challenge both
themselves and their children that they too must strive to be the best saints
they can possibly be. Meanwhile, educated
Americans need to recognize that Western Europe furnishes the world with a
great repository of paintings and music associated with All Saints’ Day.
La
Toussaint is a public holiday, so most business are
closed. After attending Mass, the French
place chrysanthemums on their relatives’ graves, so it’s definitely a faux pas, or social blunder, to give
them as a hostess gift (Cantera, 2010, para. 2-3).
French Roman Catholics observe La Toussaint as a two-day festival—All Saints Day on November 1,
and All Souls Day, November 2. Not only
is this a two-day holiday, but it’s also the start of a two-week break for
students (How to France, 2013, para. 1-3). Masses honor the memory of saints
while the French also visit cemeteries, leaving gifts, flowers, and wreaths
(How to France, 2013, para. 3-4).
Children in Brittany also play practical jokes on All Saints Day (How to
France, 2013, para. 5).
French Louisiana:
In Louisiana, Roman Catholics clean and decorate
family tombs, those who can afford to do so adorning them with chrysanthemums
and dahlias. In some parishes, priests bless the graves in local cemeteries,
the Mass ending in the singing of the Libera [me] (Catholic activity, 2013,
para.2). The Libera me, which translates into English as “Deliver me” is a
responsory hymn sung in the Office of the Dead and the absolution of the death
as found in the lyrics and the video that follows:
Mexico:
Mexico’s El
Día de los Muertos at first glance looks a lot like American Halloween, but
the two holidays have different philosophies: Whereas Halloween views death as
something to be feared, the Day of the Dead celebrates the memory of those who
have died (Erichsen, 2013, para. 1-2). When
the Spanish conquered Mexico, the Roman Catholic Church co-opted the Aztec
month-long celebration honoring the goddess Mictecacihuatl, the
Lady of the Dead, merging this festival with All Saints’ Day (Erichsen, 2013,
para. 3). Although traditions vary from
region to region, many Mexicans build an altar upon a loved one’s grave to
welcome his or her spirit home since families observe the Day of the Dead by
visiting cemeteries to tend relatives’ graves while pan de muerto, or bread of the dead, remains a favorite food
(Erichsen, 2013, para. 4):
Ireland:
This comfort food
reminds the faithful of the saints who have passed on (Gantley, 2012, para.
1). Thus, she includes a recipe for this mixture of creamed mashed potatoes, friend cabbage, and onions.
Germany:
Roman Catholic Germans mark Allerheiligentag with solemnity and respect, gathering with family to
attend church services, celebrate a family dinner, and tend the gravesites of
loved ones. In the German states of
Baden-Wurttemberg, Bavaria, Northrhine Westphalia, Rhineland Palatinate, and
Saarland, Allerheiligentag is an
official holiday (How to Germany, 2013, para. 1-2). In the morning, the family
attends a special Mass, Allerheiligen
Gottesdiens, where the sermon focuses
on leading a saintly life (How to Germany, 2013, para. 3).
As the church
bells peal out at noon, the family gets together for a holiday meal. Tradition holds that the souls of the dead
walk among the living on Allerheiligentag
until the bells repeal their presence.
Thus, after the noon meal, it’s safe for the family to head to the
cemetery where they place flowers, evergreen boughs, and lanterns and candles
on their loved ones graves, the lanterns and candles lighting their way to God
(How to Germany, 2013, para. 4).
Returning from tending these graves, family members gather for a Kaffee and Kuchen party, which features streitzel, a holiday bread god parents
give their godchildren. In some
villages, children also go caroling (How to Germany, 2013, para 4 & 5). A
recipe for strietzel follows:
Carolers
can also access a selection of Christian hymns appropriate for All Saints Day
via this link:
22nd Sunday after
Pentecost. All Saints Day. (1992).
Suggested hymns from Hymnsite.com. Revised common lectionary: Consultation on common texts. Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press. Revised from http://www.hymnsite.com/lection/cpe23.htm
Italy:
Tutti i
Santi Ognissnati, which commemorates the Church’s saints and martyrs, is a two-
or three-day festival since Italians also observe All Hallows Eve and All Souls
Day (How to Italy, 2013, para. 1). On October 31st, they sit day to a
traditional harvest festival meal, finishing it off with unfermented wine and
roasted chestnuts (How to Italy, 2013, para. 2). On All Saints Day, the family attends Mass
and then visits the cemetery, decorating the graves of loved ones with fall
flowers. While completing this chore,
parents tell their children that if they behave, their dearly departed will
have brought them gifts when they return home as shown in the English
translation of a Sicilian saying: “Holy souls, holy souls, I am one. You are
many. While I am in this world of
troubles, bring me lots of presents from dead people.” (How to Italy, 2013,
para. 3). Afterwards, the family sits
down to a meal that includes peas and lentils, a dish traditional known as
“soul food”. Then they end the meal with
a “Bones of the Dead” or an Ossi di Morto cookie (How to Italy, 2013, para.
5). The All Saints holiday season also
marks the start of the Italian opera season as well as coinciding with many
regional truffle and chestnut fairs (How to Italy, 2013, para. 4).
Poland:
How to celebrate All Saints Day in
Poland. (2013). eHow. Demand Media, Inc.
Retrieved from
http://www.ehow.com/how_2064990_celebrate-all-saints-day-poland.html
Poles combine the celebration of All
Saints Day, or Wszstkich Swietych, on
November 1st, with All Souls Day, November 2n, where they
light candles, or znicze, at the
graves of relatives to help the souls find their way. They also deck tombstones with yellow and
white chrysanthemums and asters. Parishioners hand the priest a Wypominki, a piece of paper bordered in
black wherein they write the name of the deceased for whom they want him to
pray (How to Poland, 2013, para. 1-4).
Poles also make sure to set aside food for the poor on this day (How to
Poland, 2013, para. 5).
Spain:
All Saints Day
is a national holiday in Spain and in Spanish-speaking countries, so all
businesses are closed. Spaniards start
the day by visiting the cemetery, placing offendas, or offerings, of flowers on
the graves of their loved ones. Masses are also often held in cemeteries (How
to Spain, 2013, para. 1-2). Celebrators
also often attend José Zorilla’s “Don Juan Tenorio”, a play wherein Don Juan
must choose between salvation and damnation (How to Spain, 2013, para. 3). At the end of a family holiday meal, it’s
also customary to be served el boniatio [or boniatillo], chestnuts served with
sweet potatoes, and small almond cakes called pannellets, inspired by the
legend of Maria, la Castañera, or the chestnut seller (How to Spain, 2013,
para. 4-5). A link to Juan Tenoria
follows:
Recipes for el boniatio and pannellets can be accessed below:
Videos on All Saints’ Day
Video
presents a history of All Saints and All Souls Day, defines just who saints are,
justifies the reasons for showing icons and images of saints, and provides the
theological basis of All Souls’ Day in this well-put-together film. The narrative likens saints to alumni cheering on their team.
British
video poses the question, “Who is a saint” whereupon it gives the reasons
behind celebrating All Saints’ Day. This thoughtful video applies to both Roman
Catholic and Protestant versions of this Christian holiday.
Video
gives an explanation of All Saints Day as well as providing a gallery of
pictures of prominent saints—both modern and ancient while the lyrics “Let my
lifesong sing to you” offer an underlying theme for the day.
Children’s Books about All
Saints’ Day
Chambers, Catherine. (1997). All Saints, All Souls, and Halloween.
World of Holidays. Chicago:
Raintree.
Chambers explains the tradition of All Saints Day
that come from Europe and Latin American and their influence on American Halloween.
Lasky, Kathryn. (1994). Days of the Dead. Knight,
Christopher G. (Photographer). New York: Hyperion.
Lasky delves into the history behind this Mexican
festival as the book shadows an individual family celebrating El Día de los Muertos.
Music for All Saints’ Day
Music
appreciation students to be should familiarize themselves with these All Saints’
Day musical selections:
Although
Mozart patterned this Mass after some of Handel’s work, this unfinished Requiem
Mass is a masterpiece in its own right.
Music
for All Saints Day. (2012, November 12).
A Clerk of Oxford. Retrieved from
Web
site contains a collection of videos of hymns associated with All Saints’ Day.
Although the video photography may not be that clear, users can certainly enjoy
the inspirational songs.
Audio
recording provides 24 separate Gregorian chants that make up the Toussaint
Requiem Mass and Office of the Dead. “Toussaint” is French for All Saints.
__________________________
What a Treat!
Music Resources Online for Children
Young children might enjoy listening to the following Web sites:
 |
K.P.R. Music Resources for Children Online |
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Celebrating All Saints' Day in
Paintings
In
Art Appreciation 101, a picture, to use a cliché, is worth a thousand words:
