Roman Catholics are familiar with celebrating All Saints Day on November 1 each year, which is why it might be strange to hear that Eastern Catholics (and Eastern Orthodox Christians), celebrate All Saints Sunday following Pentecost.
It could seem like a random choice inserting the celebration of All Saints on a Sunday during the first half of the year instead of a fixed day during the second half of the year.
Is is random? Or is there a reason for this peculiar choice?
Fruit of life in the Spirit
For Roman Catholics, All Saints Day is celebrated on November 1 because of a chapel the pope dedicated in St. Peter's Basilica. On November 1, 735, Pope Gregory III dedicated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to a variety of saints, making it a privileged feast day in the city of Rome. Shortly thereafter Pope Gregory IV established November 1 as a holy day of obligation in the universal Church dedicated to All Saints.
In the East, All Saints Day was celebrated on the Sunday following Pentecost, with a desire to link living a life of holiness with the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The Eparchy of Newton summarizes this connection by explaining, "On Pentecost we say that the Holy Spirit has come upon the Church. On the next Sunday, we demonstrate the truth of this claim by pointing to the saints."
Furthermore, the Eparchy continues its commentary with an illustration from a teaching of St. John Vianney:
“If the damned were asked, ‘Why are you in hell?’ they would answer, ‘For having resisted the Holy Spirit.’ And if the saints were asked, ‘Why are you in Heaven?’ they would answer, ‘For having listened to the Holy Spirit.’ When good thoughts come into our minds, it is the Holy Spirit who is visiting us. The Holy Spirit is a power. The Holy Spirit supported St Simeon on his column. He sustained the martyrs. Without the Holy Spirit, the martyrs would have fallen like the leaves from the trees.”
The choice to celebrate All Saints on the Sunday following Pentecost is very deliberate, making a strong spiritual connection, reminding us that if we want to become saints, we need to listen to the Holy Spirit.
The lives of the saints are the fruit of the Holy Spirit's work within them.
In this way Roman Catholics can learn from Eastern Catholics and appreciate the symbolism of this celebration, taking it to heart and contemplating how to be reception to the Holy Spirit's inspiration.
