by Christine Sine

On November 1, we celebrate All Saints Day and I thought that I would repost some of the suggestions from past years for you to enjoy. I know I need to revisit this post every year to get ideas for what I want to do, so thought you would appreciate this refresher as well. This year my thoughts are focused on my brother Nick, whose life I am celebrating as I join with the rest of my family in Australia. Sharing photos, memories and laughter is a great way to remember someone who was always very special to me.

Here are some suggestions on how to celebrate:

Remembering those who impact our lives, those who have gone before, and those who are still with us is an important part of our faith. The Episcopal Church website explains:

We step aside from the flow of the propers and celebrate all the saints. We stop. We notice, We are surrounded by a flock of witnesses in our midst – many who have gone before us, some we are just now releasing, and still more with a full life ahead of them.

Renew Your Baptismal Vows

I love the Anglican tradition of renewing our baptismal vows on this day. Reminding ourselves of the journey we have taken personally is a good place to start in remembering the saints of God. In this tradition, all baptized Christians, living and dead known and unknown are considered saints of God. This means everyone including ourselves.

So as you get ready for All Saints Day, think about your own faith journey. Remember the faithfulness of God in your past. Notice the movement of God in the present. Think about your hopes and dreams for the future. Get ready to celebrate all that you are as a saint of God.

But don’t stop there. This is a special day for celebrating. Here are some suggestions:

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Plan a special “remembering” table

This is a great idea to set up in the nave, though you could also do this as a family celebration.. Have congregants or family members bring photos or small memorabilia of dear ones who have gone before us and place them on the table. During the worship on All Saint’s Day, or during a family meal on that day, hold a special blessing of the photos and memories. Saint Andrews Episcopal in Seattle provides white ribbons for people to write the names of their departed loved ones on. These are wound around the communion rail and hung around the church for the season after All Saints Day.

Hold an All Saints’ Day party

A great alternative to Halloween. Get everyone to dress as their favourite saint, or to bring a picture of this saint. During the festivities, get everyone to share a story about their saint and the impact he or she has had on their lives. Or you might like to get participants to guess who each person represents.

Plan a family heritage party. 

Invite people to do some work beforehand researching their family history and particularly the Christian saints who were a part of it. Ask them to bring photos and stories to share. Finish with a time of prayer for all those that have gone before us.

• Also, a lovely idea for gathering together online and connecting with others in a deeper way for this holiday.

Several years ago, when my youngest brother went to Greece, where my father comes from, he found out that it is possible that our family name, Aroney, comes from the name Aaron and that our family probably originated in Jerusalem many centuries ago. It is probable that one of the reasons they began the journey out of Jerusalem first to Constantinople, then to Rhodes and finally to the tiny island of Kithera, at the bottom of the Peloponnese mountains, is because they became Christians. There are a number of Greek orthodox priests in my father’s family history and my Aunt Mary was a very devout Greek Orthodox Christian. nI know less about my mother’s family history but would love to find out where her family has had profound encounters with God too.

Plan an All Saints Day pilgrimage.

Again this might require some before time research. Explore the Christian heritage of your community. Where did the first Christians come from? How did they interact with the native peoples? Where was the first church established? Who were some of the early Christians who impacted your community. Plan a pilgrimage walk to the site of the first Christian community and, if possible, have a time of prayer and possibly even a eucharistic celebration to remember those who have gone before.

This Taize service from St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church may also inspire some ideas for celebrating or just allow you to contemplate the celebration of this day.