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All Saints' Day |
The earliest certain
observance of a feast in honor of all the saints is an early fourth-century
commemoration of "all the martyrs." In the early seventh century, after
successive waves of invaders plundered the catacombs, Pope Boniface IV
gathered up some 28 wagonloads of bones and reinterred them beneath the
Pantheon, a Roman temple dedicated to all the gods. The pope rededicated the
shrine as a Christian church. According to Venerable Bede, the pope intended
"that the memory of all the saints might in the future be honored in the
place which had formerly been dedicated to the worship not of gods but of
demons" (On the Calculation of Time).
But the rededication of the Pantheon, like the earlier commemoration of all
the martyrs, occurred in May. Many Eastern Churches still honor all the
saints in the spring, either during the Easter season or immediately after
Pentecost.
How the Western Church came to celebrate this feast in November is a puzzle
to historians. The Anglo-Saxon theologian Alcuin observed the feast on
November 1 in 800, as did his friend Arno, Bishop of Salzburg. Rome finally
adopted that date in the ninth century. |
Lesson
Hymn in Honor of Our Ancestors
Epistle
The 144,000 of Israel Sealed
The Multitude from Every Nation
Gospel
The Beatitudes
Blessed are the... |
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Lesson |
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Ecclesiasticus 44:1-10,13-14 |
1: Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers in their generations.
2: The Lord apportioned to them great glory, his majesty from the beginning.
3: There were those who ruled in their kingdoms, and were men renowned for
their power, giving counsel by their understanding, and proclaiming
prophecies;
4: leaders of the people in their deliberations and in understanding of
learning for the people, wise in their words of instruction;
5: those who composed musical tunes, and set forth verses in writing;
6: rich men furnished with resources, living peaceably in their habitations
--
7: all these were honored in their generations, and were the glory of their
times.
8: There are some of them who have left a name, so that men declare their
praise.
9: And there are some who have no memorial, who have perished as though they
had not lived; they have become as though they had not been born, and so
have their children after them.
10: But these were men of mercy, whose righteous deeds have not been
forgotten;
13: Their posterity will continue for ever, and their glory will not be
blotted out.
14: Their bodies were buried in peace, and their name lives to all
generations. |
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Epistle |
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Revelation 7:2-4,9-17 |
2: Then I saw another
angel ascend from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God,
and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power
to harm earth and sea,
3: saying, "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, till we have
sealed the servants of our God upon their foreheads."
4: And I heard the number of the sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand
sealed, out of every tribe of the sons of Israel,
9: After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could
number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing
before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm
branches in their hands,
10: and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits
upon the throne, and to the Lamb!"
11: And all the angels stood round the throne and round the elders and the
four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and
worshiped God,
12: saying, "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor
and power and might be to our God for ever and ever! Amen."
13: Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, "Who are these, clothed in
white robes, and whence have they come?"
14: I said to him, "Sir, you know." And he said to me, "These are they who
have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and
made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15: Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night
within his temple; and he who sits upon the throne will shelter them with
his presence.
16: They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; the sun shall not
strike them, nor any scorching heat.
17: For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he
will guide them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away every
tear from their eyes." |
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Gospel |
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Matthew 5:1-12 |
1: Seeing the crowds,
he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him.
2: And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
3: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4: "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they
shall be satisfied.
7: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
8: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10: "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11: "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all
kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
12: Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men
persecuted the prophets who were before you. |
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