November 1: All Saint's Day

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,

Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress and their Might;
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true Light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


For the Apostles’ glorious company,
Who bearing forth the Cross o’er land and sea,
Shook all the mighty world, we sing to Thee:
Alleluia, Alleluia!


For the Evangelists, by whose blest word,
Like fourfold streams, the garden of the Lord,
Is fair and fruitful, be Thy Name adored.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


For Martyrs, who with rapture kindled eye,
Saw the bright crown descending from the sky,
And seeing, grasped it, Thee we glorify.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
All are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


O may Thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
And win with them the victor’s crown of gold.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave, again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of glory passes on His way.
Alleluia, Alleluia!


From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
And singing to Father, Son and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia, Alleluia!
(Ralph Vaughn Williams)

Each day of the liturgical year, the Church celebrates the lives of one or more saints—men and women recognized for their holiness and contribution to the faith. Today, November 1, we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints—the day on which the Church celebrates all the saints—those whose names we know, and those purified in heaven:

“After this I had a vision of a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue. They stood before the throne and before the Lamb, wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.... [One of the elders] said to me, ‘These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.’” (Revelation 7:9,14)

The feast of All Saints inspires us with tremendous hope—hope that we, too, will achieve sainthood in heaven. For, it is certain that among the saints in heaven are those who we have known on earth. Some we have read about. Some we have modeled our lives after or aspired to be like. Some we have personally known, and they have gone before us marked with the sign of faith. We are reminded today, especially as we read the Beatitudes in the Gospel, that there is one true way to achieve happiness on earth and sanctity in heaven: by faithfully following the teachings of Jesus Christ, as the saints and martyrs before us did!

Pope Benedict, on All Saint’s Day (2008) proclaimed the following words:

“With great joy, we celebrate today the feast of All Saints. Visiting a nursery garden, one remains taken aback at the variety of plants and flowers, and spontaneously begins to think of the Creator's fantasy that made the earth a marvelous garden. These same sentiments come to us when we consider the spectacle of holiness: the world appears to us as a "garden," where the Spirit of God has sustained with remarkable wonder a multitude of saints, male and female, from every age and social condition, of every tongue, people and culture.

Each is different from the others, with the uniqueness of their own personality and their own spiritual charism. All, however, were marked by the "seal" of Jesus, the imprint of his love, witnessed upon the Cross. All now are at joy, in a feast without end as, like Jesus, they reached this goal across toil and trial, each one encountering their share of sacrifice to participate in the glory of the resurrection.”

So, today, we celebrate and honor the saints and martyrs of the Church—both known and unknown. While there are thousands of canonized saints in the Church, we known there are an incalculable number whose names have not been recorded—from early Christian martyrs to those in our communities who lived quiet, humble lives in service to the Lord and one another. We ask for their prayers and intercessions, and appreciate our deep communion with them—that is, that all of God's people, on heaven, earth, and in Purgatory in the state of purification, are connected in a communion. The saints of God are just as alive as you and I, and are constantly interceding on our behalf. As with Our Blessed Mother, the saints are not all-knowing or all-powerful. However, because of our common communion with and through Jesus Christ, our prayers are joined with the heavenly community of Christians.
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "...as Christian communion among our fellow pilgrims brings us closer to Christ, so our communion with the saints joins us to Christ, from whom as from its fountain and head issues all grace, and the life of the People of God itself: We worship Christ as God's Son; we love the martyrs as the Lord's disciples and imitators, and rightly so because of their matchless devotion towards their king and master. May we also be their companions and fellow disciples.” (CCC 956, 957)

Today, on this most holy of days, we raise our voices with the saints and martyrs—known and unknown—and praise the Lord! May all the holy saints and martyrs of the Church pray for us, on this their solemnity!
"The glorious company of the apostles praise Thee.
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise Thee.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise Thee.
All Thy saints and elect with one voice do acknowledge Thee,
O Blessed Trinity, one God!"
(Te Deum)

Father, all-powerful and ever-living God,
today we rejoice in the holy men and women
of every time and place.
May their prayers bring us your forgiveness and love.


We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


Day 305 365
Prayer Intentions: Spiritual sainthood on earth.
Requested Intentions: Spiritual growth and family peace (A); Freedom to immigrate (D); End to debt (N); Restoration of a marriage (J); Complete recovery of son (P); Recovery of parish priest, health of mother, conversion of son (J); Successful employment, end to depression (J); Successful immigration and employment (S); Conversion of an unloving daughter (M); Recovery of husband, health of mother, economic freedom (R); Freedom from depression, restoration of family relationships (N); Restoration of a relationship (J); Healing of friends from cancer (J); Complete healing of a friend with pancreatic cancer (J); Recognition of God’s Will; Obedience in vocation (J); Successful employment (M&I); For a son who struggles (S); Conversion (P); For family, peace, and social justice (J); Son’s employment (K); Discernment of the Lord’s will (A); Mother’s full recovery from a stroke (K); Employment (P); For family’s prosperity and employment (M); For a husband’s addiction (F); Health in a relationship, literary representation (D); For a mother struggling with cancer (P); Employment and financial assistance (L); End to work troubles, return to health (R); For a husband’s recovery from alcoholism (M); Healing of a father following stroke (S).