Happy Feast of All Saints!

A happy and most joyful feast of All Saints! On this day we commemorate all the members of the Church Triumphant, that is, all the angels and saints who are in Heaven and enjoy the beatific vision. Included among the saints are not only those whom the Church has officially canonized and whose names we know, but also all the faithful departed who have entered Heaven. So if we do our bit and make it to Heaven, it will be our feast day too! Don’t forget that your future feast day is a Holy Day of Obligation, so be sure to get to Mass.

The feast of All Saints is one in which we should take particular joy, reflecting on the way that God’s grace works in every human life and situation. The saints were not of any one type: they came from every part of the world, every walk of life, social strata both high and low, they were monarchs, religious, stableboys, accountants, doctors, soldiers, mothers, fathers, ordinary men and women of all ages. Some were saints from their youth, like St. Aloysius Gonzaga; some were repentant sinners, like St. Augustine; some were rulers, like St. Elizabeth of Hungary; some were poor, simple girls like St. Bernadette; some are well-known, some obscure, some unknown; some led the Church, some led nations, some wrote volumes, some could barely write at all. Some just prayed and did their daily work with love and devotion. What unites them all is their wholehearted response to God’s call to holiness, which is something about them that we too – who are called to be saints – can imitate in our everyday lives. So if you ever are tempted to think that you aren’t “saint material,” perhaps take that dusty Lives of the Saints book off the shelf and flip it open. You may find that once upon a time, many of them were not so different from you. +

Gaudeámus omnes in Dómino, diem festum celebrántes sub honóre Sanctórum ómnium: de quorum solemnitáte gaudent Ángeli, et colláudant Fílium Dei.

Let us all rejoice in the Lord, celebrating a festival day in honor of all the Saints: at whose solemnity the Angels rejoice, and give praise to the Son of God.

– from the Introit for today

We wish a happy patronal feast day to the Church of All Saints, our apostolate in Minneapolis, Minnesota!