On All Saints’ Day, the Church celebrates the countless men and women who have gone before us in faith and now rejoice in the presence of God. In today’s first Lesson, Saint John sees “a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and peoples, and tongues,” standing before the throne of God and the Lamb. They are clothed in white robes, not because they were without sin, but because they “have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
This is the foundation of our veneration of the saints. We do not honour them as though they had achieved holiness by their own strength. We honour them because we recognise in their lives the wonderful work of God's grace. And we honour them in several ways.
First, we give thanks to God for His saints—for the mercy He has shown them, for the gifts He has bestowed upon His Church through them, and for their faithfulness in putting those gifts to good use.
Second, their lives strengthen our faith. When we remember how Saint Peter was forgiven after denying his Lord, or how countless sinners were transformed into saints, we are encouraged to trust more confidently in God’s mercy. The saints remind us that holiness is not reserved for those who have never fallen, but is the fruit of God's grace in those who turn to Him.
Third, we seek to imitate their faith and virtues. Today’s Gospel shows us what holiness looks like: humility, mercy, purity of heart, hunger for righteousness, and faithfulness even in suffering. These are not virtues reserved for a chosen few. They are the calling of every Christian, each according to his own vocation and circumstances.
But the saints are not merely figures of the past whose memory we cherish. They are living members of Christ’s mystical Body, united with us in Him. We may therefore ask for their prayers, just as we ask our fellow Christians here on earth to pray for us. Death cannot sever the communion of those who belong to Christ.
And above all, the veneration of the saints directs our hearts towards Christ Himself. We worship God alone, but we honour His saints as witnesses to His grace, companions in prayer, and examples of holy living.