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Solemnity celebrated on the
first of November. It is instituted to honor all the saints, known and
unknown, and, according to Urban IV, to supply any deficiencies in the
faithful's celebration of saints' feasts during the year.
In the early days the Christians were accustomed to solemnize the
anniversary of a martyr's death for Christ at the place of martyrdom. In
the fourth century, neighboring dioceses began to interchange feasts, to
transfer relics, to divide them, and to join in a common feast; as is
shown by the invitation of Saint Basil of Caesarea (397) to the bishops of
the province of Pontus. Frequently groups of martyrs suffered on the same
day, which naturally led to a joint commemoration. In the persecution of
Diocletian the number of martyrs became so great that a separate day could
not be assigned to each. But the Church, feeling that every martyr should
be venerated, appointed a common day for all. The first trace of this we
find in Antioch on the Sunday after Pentecost. We also find mention of a
common day in a sermon of Saint Ephrem the Syrian (373), and in the 74th
homily of Saint John Chrysostom (407).
At first only martyrs and Saint John the Baptist were honored by a special
day. Other saints were added gradually, and increased in number when a
regular process of canonization was established; still, as early as 411
there is in the Chaldean Calendar a "Commemoratio Confessorum" for the
Friday after Easter. In the west, Pope Boniface IV on 13 May 609 or 610,
consecrated the Pantheon in Rome to the Blessed Virgin and all the
martyrs, ordering an anniversary. Gregory III (731-741) consecrated a
chapel in the Basilica of Saint Peter to all the saints and fixed the
anniversary for 1 November. A basilica of the Apostles already existed in
Rome, and its dedication was annually remembered on 1 May. Gregory IV
(827-844) extended the celebration on 1 November to the entire Church. The
vigil seems to have been held as early as the feast itself. The octave was
added by Sixtus IV (1471-84).
-Francis Merseman, from the Catholic Encyclopedia, copyright 1907
source:
http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/define97.htm
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