When is All Saints' Day in the year? All Saints' Day

Catholics celebrate All Saints' Day annually on November 1 - this is one of the ten main holidays of the Roman Catholic liturgical year, which has the rank of a great celebration.

All Saints' Day is also celebrated by the Orthodox - the date of the holiday in the Orthodox Church is moveable and is always celebrated on the next Sunday after Trinity.

The essence of the holiday for both Orthodox and Catholics is the same - the veneration of all Saints, starting from the earliest centuries of Christianity, who, having heard the Word of God, accepted Him into their hearts and, following Christ, saved their souls.

When did the holiday originate?

The memory of the Saints has been revered since early christian church when all Christians were called Saints, as those who received in baptism new life and belong henceforth to Christ. The first Christians whom the church began to honor in a special way were those who died for the faith.

It is unknown how many saints there are in Christianity. The feat of thousands will never be known, including the martyrs of the first centuries of the Christian Church, torn apart wild animals in the circus arena for faith in Christ.

© photo: Sputnik / Nataliya Seliverstova

There is much evidence of the custom of preserving the relics of martyrs as a precious relic and honoring the burial place. Similar celebrations and prayers at the graves of martyrs for the faith were accepted everywhere where their burials were located.

The day of veneration of these Holy Ascetics was usually considered the day of death, which began to be called their birthday for heaven. Subsequently, the cult of the martyrs spread to all local churches and, in addition to the days of remembrance of individual martyrs, a general holiday began to be celebrated in their honor.

The first mention of All Saints' Day was noted in the 4th century. Saint John Chrysostom testifies that the Byzantine Church honored the memory of all martyrs on the first Sunday after Pentecost.

In the western church

The holiday was introduced in the 6th century and was initially celebrated, as in the East, on the first Sunday after Pentecost. The holiday was later moved to May 13, the day of the consecration of the temple in Rome in 610 in honor of the Virgin Mary and all the martyrs (S. Maria ad Martyres), which was rebuilt from the pagan pantheon under Pope Boniface IV.

By order of Pope Gregory III, the holiday, which was renamed All Saints' Day, was moved from the 8th century to November 1 - with this the Christian church wanted to eradicate the pagan traditions of celebrating the Celtic New Year.

© photo: Sputnik / Natalia Seliverstova

In Old English, the pre-holiday night sounded like All Hallows Even, or abbreviated as Hallowe'en, and then even shorter as Halloween. And so it appeared modern name Halloween, which is still celebrated today.

The Solemnity of All Saints is one of the obligatory holidays of the Catholic Church; all Christians should participate in it, except those who cannot do so for serious reasons.

The liturgical prayers of All Saints' Day glorify God, the sole source of holiness, express faith in the immortality of the saints, and also appeal to their intercession.

For Catholics, All Saints' Day is followed by All Souls' Day, which is celebrated on November 2.

In Orthodoxy

The Cathedral of All Saints is an annual moving holiday, which in 2018 will be celebrated on June 3. In all Orthodox churches On this day, a festive liturgy is held, canons of praise are read and a general prayer service is served in honor of all the followers of Jesus Christ - prophets, martyrs, confessors, hermits, saints, saints, holy fools for Christ's sake.

© photo: Sputnik / Yuri Kaver

It is no coincidence that this day was appointed after the holiday of the Trinity, because it is the Trinity that is considered the day of the formation of the Orthodox Church. Through the efforts and sacrifices of people who believed, Orthodoxy was spread throughout the world, and as a reward, all those who contributed to this were accepted as equals in the Kingdom of Heaven.

On this day, festive services are held in all churches and the deeds of the servants of the Lord are remembered. At the morning liturgy, all the Gospels, which tell the story of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, are traditionally read.

Prayers

First prayer

Holy God and rest in the saints, glorified by the angels with a thrice-holy voice in heaven, praised on earth by man in His saints, giving grace to each by Your Holy Spirit according to the bestowal of Christ, and by that ordaining to the Church of Your Holy Ones apostles, prophets, and evangelists , you are shepherds and teachers, whose word of preaching, to You who acts all in all, has been accomplished in many ways, saints in every generation and generation, having pleased You with various benefactors, and to You, having left us the image of your good deeds, in the joy that has passed, prepare, in He himself was tempted, and he helped us those who were attacked. All these saints and (the name of the saint) remembering and praising their godly lives, I praise You Samago, who acted in them, and believing in Your goodness, the gift of being, I diligently pray to You, Holy of Holies, grant to me a sinner to follow their teaching, life, love, faith, long-suffering, and their prayerful help, and moreover Your all-effective grace, the heavenly ones with them will be honored with glory, praising Your Most Holy Name, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit forever. Amen.

Second prayer

O blessed saints of God, all the saints who stand before the Throne of the Most Holy Trinity and enjoy indescribable bliss! Behold, now, on the day of your common triumph, mercifully look upon us, your lesser brothers, who bring you this song of praise and through your intercession asking for mercy and remission of sins from the Most Blessed Lord: we know, truly we know, for all that you desire, ask Him you can. Therefore, we humbly pray to you: pray to the merciful Master, may he give us the spirit of your zeal for keeping His holy commandments, so that, following in your footsteps, we will be able to pass through the earthly field in a virtuous life without vice and in repentance reach the glorious villages of paradise, and there, together with with you glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

The material was prepared based on open sources

All Saints' Day was known in the early Christian church. Then all Christians were called saints, as having received new life in baptism and from now on belonging to Christ.

“To the saints who are in Ephesus”, “to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi” - this is how the Apostle Paul addressed his messages, addressing the first Christians. The first Christians whom the church began to honor in a special way were those who died for the faith. The first known venerated martyr is considered to be Saint Polycarp of Smyrna, whose martyrdom was described in detail in the “District Epistle of the Church of Smyrna to other Churches,” dating from the year 155. In this document, the remains of the martyr are called more valuable than gold and precious stones. The message testified to the existence of the custom of preserving the relics of martyrs as a precious relic and honoring the burial place. Similar celebrations and prayers at the graves of martyrs for the faith were accepted everywhere where their burials were located. The day of veneration of these holy ascetics was usually considered the day of death, which began to be called their birthday for heaven.

Subsequently, the cult of the martyrs spread to all local churches and, in addition to the days of remembrance of individual martyrs, a general holiday began to be celebrated in their honor. Saint John Chrysostom testifies that the Byzantine Church honored the memory of all martyrs on the first Sunday after Pentecost. In East Syrian worship, the day of remembrance of the martyrs was the first Friday after Easter.

In the Roman church, the holiday was celebrated on May 13, which was associated with the day of the consecration of the temple in Rome in 609 (under another date in 610) in honor of the Virgin Mary and the martyrs. By this day, 28 carts of the remains of Christians who gave their lives for the faith were transported from the catacombs to the church. The annual remembrance of this event became the first celebration of the day, which is now known as the Solemnity of All Saints. Some time later, under Pope Gregory III, the concept of holiness expanded and began to include those who endured persecution and suffering for their faith in Christ, even when the persecution did not end in martyrdom, and then also ascetics who became famous for their virtuous lives - “all the blameless the righteous who have fallen asleep throughout the entire circle of the earth."

Pope Gregory IV officially introduced the feast of All Saints into church practice, moving it to November 1. The time of celebration was moved from spring to autumn, following the example of England and Ireland, where by this time it had been customary for more than a hundred years to remember all the saints on this day.

Until the 11th century, holiness was evidenced by the popular veneration of one or another ascetic or martyr. The first officially canonized saint was Ulrich of Augsburg - the process of canonization was completed in 1093, 120 years after his death.

The Solemnity of All Saints is one of the obligatory holidays of the Catholic Church; all Christians should participate in it, except those who cannot do so for serious reasons.

The liturgical prayers of All Saints' Day glorify God, the only source of holiness, express faith in the immortality of the saints, and also appeal to their intercession. Readings from Holy Scripture, in turn, reproduce the ethical code of Christianity (the eight “beatitudes” from the Sermon on the Mount) and testify to the presence of countless armies of saints.

All Saints' Day is followed by All Souls' Day, which is celebrated on November 2. In addition, for eight days, starting from November 1, it is customary to celebrate requiem masses, and the faithful are invited to especially intense prayer for the departed dear to their hearts.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

Bishop Pavel told Vesti readers about the traditions of this day

On the first Sunday after the Feast of Trinity, the Church remembers the memory of all the saints, starting from the earliest centuries of Christianity - these are prophets, martyrs, confessors, hermits, saints, saints, holy fools for Christ's sake, all those who, having heard the Word of God, accepted Him into their hearts and, By following Christ, they saved their souls. Their life was best example sermons on the way to the Kingdom of Heaven.

The rector of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, Metropolitan of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl, Vladyka Pavel, told Vesti readers about the traditions of this day.

All Saints Day for the Orthodox - 2017

All Saints' Day. Icon. Photo: pravmir.ru

During the liturgy, an excerpt from the Epistle to the Hebrews is read, in which the Church glorifies the Old Testament righteous.

"It is no coincidence that we celebrate this day a week after Trinity, because on the day of Trinity the birth of the Church of Christ took place and as a consequence of this event, people, just like you and me, caught fire in their minds and hearts and carried the Word of God throughout their lives. Their destinies unfolded differently: some suffered torment for Christ, some went to deserted places, into seclusion, into caves to glorify the name of the Lord, some accepted the feat of foolishness... There are countless saints, some of whom we even We don't know the names. But all of them are our intercessors and prayer books before the Lord,” noted Metropolitan Pavel.

If we recall history, the apostles were among the first to be commemorated, then the martyrs who suffered martyrdom.

"We know many saints who were in the priesthood (St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. Luke of Voino-Yasenetsky). A whole host Reverend Fathers of Kiev-Pechersk, Reverends Sergius of Radonezh, Seraphim of Sarov. We will never know the names of all the saints, because their exploits were hidden from people. And how many were shot in the camps, tortured by hunger, killed in prisons, the whole world is unworthy of them. With their righteous life they reached the quiet haven of the Kingdom of Heaven,” Vladika Paul is confident.

The Apostle Paul says: “To one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another different languages, to interpret tongues to another" (1 Cor. 12:8-10).

“When we read the lives of the saints, we see as many examples of paths to God as there are people living on earth: the prudent thief, the Venerable Mary of Egypt, the holy martyrs Cyprian and Justinia, and all the ascetics of piety, of whom the whole world is unworthy. We must only understand how close to We have the grace of God and we just need to accept it,” the Metropolitan explained.

All Saints' Day among the Orthodox: history

The mention of the Feast of All Saints dates back to the end of the 4th - beginning of the 5th centuries, in the sermon of John Chrysostom. This holiday is also remembered in the hymns of St. Ephraim the Syrian.

“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, I cordially congratulate you on Angel Day, I prayerfully wish that Christ, the Savior of the world, will deign us, through the prayers of all saints, to be heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven,” the rector of the Lavra addressed the readers of Vesti.

And a week after the general All Saints Day, Russian Orthodox Church celebrates another holiday: the Council of all saints who have shone in the Russian land.

All Saints' Day for Catholics

In mid-autumn, Catholics celebrate Halloween, which heralds the onset of another holiday - All Saints' Day.

The meaning of the holiday for Catholics is the same as for Orthodox Christians: honoring all those who dedicated their lives to serving Christianity and suffered in some way because of their faith.

However, Catholics view this event a little differently. On this day, it is customary to dress up in scary costumes, make noise, sing and have fun in every possible way. And the reason for this behavior was the pagan roots of the holiday. Previously it was believed that on Halloween all the evil spirits come out of their hiding places and look for victims. Therefore, people tried to transform themselves into dark forces as believably as possible, so as not to attract attention to themselves, or not to show themselves from the house at all.

Catholics and Protestants celebrate All Saints' Day in the fall - for them the holiday is immutable and is always celebrated on November 1. Catholics call All Saints' Eve Halloween and is celebrated on the evening of October 31st.

Believers of these faiths will try to visit the cemetery to honor the memory of their deceased relatives. Those who did not have time to do this on this date can do it the next day - November 2, All Souls' Day.

According to some sources, the idea of ​​All Saints' Day dates back to the fourth century, when Greek Christians held a festival on the first Sunday after Pentecost (late May or early June) in honor of all martyrs and saints. Other sources say that the celebration of "All Martyrs" began to be celebrated as early as 270 AD, but no specific month or date is recorded.

Pope Gregory IV made All Saints' Day an official holiday in 837 AD. It is speculated that the chosen date for the event, November 1st, may have been the purpose of trying to supplant the pagan festivals that occurred at the same time.

What date is All Saints' Day in 2017: The Catholic Church commemorates all saints

On the Feast of All Saints, the Catholic Church commemorates all saints, especially those who do not have their own feast day.

In the fourth century, it was necessary to adopt the Feast of All Saints because at that time there were so many saints that it was impossible to assign a day of remembrance for everyone

All Saints' Day is an official holiday in many Catholic countries and regions. The holiday date for most countries is November 1st.

What date is All Saints' Day in 2017: traditional rituals take place on this day

In many places, cemetery rites of Catholic clergy take place in cemeteries on All Saints' Day. This custom has nothing to do with the Feast of All Saints, but belongs to the next Memorial Day of All Souls on November 2nd. However, since All Hallows is a statutory holiday and All Souls is usually a working day, it has become natural to keep the burial ceremony always on All Hallows' Day.

It refers to quiet holidays that are subject to special rules. This includes, for example, a ban on dancing: no dance performances can be held on All Saints' Day, and loud music is prohibited.

There are different customs on All Saints' Day. In some regions, for example, traditional baked goods made from yeast dough - the so-called "soul" - are given from godfather to godson.

What date is All Saints Day in 2017: this day is closely related to another ritual day - All Souls Day

In the Catholic Church, All Souls' Day is inextricably linked with All Saints' Day and is also of great importance.From November 1 to November 8, believers can perform an act of forgiveness for the deceased, also called indulgence, which should free the deceased from all punishments.However, sins are not part of grace.To preserve the Soul of All Souls, confession, apostasy, holy fellowship, and the Lord's Supper and prayer are necessary.In addition, on All Souls Day, one must attend a service where believers pray to the Lord and confess.Moreover, according to the Catholic faith, it is important to make a prayer at the grave of the deceased.

Traditionally, believers light candles on this day.

All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day are closely related to another traditionally celebrated day, "All Hallows' Eve", the so-called Halloween. This day is popular among young people. Traditionally, faces are painted by lighting candles made from pumpkins in a special way.

Christians zealously honor the traditions of their ancestors, not ignoring any holiday that the church has prescribed to be remembered and celebrated.

One of these days is All Saints' Day. This holiday exists not only among Catholics, but also in Orthodoxy. From this article you will learn when and how All Saints' Day will be celebrated in different Christian denominations (Catholicism and Orthodoxy) in 2017 and what traditions exist that have formed during the long history of this holiday.

In the Catholic world there is a feast of All Saints, which believers celebrate on November 1st. People believe that on All Saints' Day, the souls of the departed come to their home and demand food from the living.

The pagan roots of this holiday are closely intertwined with the traditions of the Celtic tribes who celebrate their Samhain holiday on this day, or in our opinion New Year. It was believed that on this day all the “unclean” things could end up in our world and any person could also end up in the otherworldly space.

People first started talking about All Saints' Day back in the 4th century. And 2 thousand years ago, during the reign of Pope Boniface IV, at his insistence, the Roman Pantheon was consecrated in honor of the memory of the Mother of God, so that, as one English historian mentioned, “in the future this memory could be celebrated even in those places where people worship not gods, but demons."

In Britain, this holiday was known as “All Hallows Eve,” which is so similar in name to modern Halloween.

This is not surprising, since it is actually "Allholly's Eve", which appeared due to the widespread celebration of All Saints' Day in many countries, the site reports. That is why today, on Halloween Day, on the streets you can see representatives of evil spirits and witches organizing a Sabbath.

Almost every resident of our country is well aware that in mid-autumn Catholics celebrate a holiday called Halloween, which foreshadows the onset of another interesting event- All Saints' Day.

The meaning of the holiday for Catholics is the same as for Orthodox Christians: honoring all those who dedicated their lives to serving Christianity and suffered in some way because of their faith. However, Catholics view this event a little differently.

On this day, it is customary to dress up in scary costumes, make noise, sing and have fun in every possible way. And the reason for this behavior was the pagan roots of the holiday. Previously, it was believed that on Halloween all evil spirits come out of their hiding places and look for victims for their dark plans.

Therefore, the common population tried to transform into dark forces as plausibly as possible, so as not to attract attention to themselves, or to avoid showing up from home at all.

On All Saints' Day 2017 - November 1, Catholics will try to visit the cemetery to honor the memory of their deceased relatives. Those who did not have time to do this on this date can do it the next day - November 2, All Souls' Day.