All Souls' Day

Catholics know that Nov. 2 is the correct day for remembering and honoring the dead. It is meant to be a sacred day of prayer.

- ELFREN S. CRUZ

But for us, All Saints’ Day is when we all troop to the cemeteries to pay our respects to our deceased loved ones. It is a happy occasion as the day celebrates the saints. And we all know the gaiety and festivity that characterize Philippine gatherings in November. Truly, fiesta-like.

It is a special public holiday that warrants traffic routes to be reassigned and reorganized. In a sense, the city is at a standstill.

All Saints’ Day, also known as All Hallows’ Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honor of all the saints of the Church, whether they are known or unknown.

It is good to remember the little-known history behind these two days. All Saints’ Day traces its beginning to the Feast of All Holy Martyrs introduced by Pope Boniface IV when, on May 13, 615 AD, he dedicated the ancient Roman temple of Pantheon as a church to the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the martyrs of the Church.

In 844 AD, Pope Gregory IV transferred the celebration to Nov. 1 because he felt that it would be easier to feed the many pilgrims who came to visit Rome after the harvest.