Remembering All Saints' Day
with your Children
All Saints’ Day is one of seven Principal Feasts observed in the Episcopal Church. This Sunday, November 3
rd
, is the closest to All Saints’ Day, so in Children’s Church we will remember saints in our church, such as Barnabas, our patron saint. A saint is the ultimate example of the presence of Christ in human lives. Many saints are well known and are honored with special saints’ days in our Church calendar. You’ll find a list of these saints in the Calendar section of The Book of Common Prayer. But we also don’t want to forget to talk about the saints who are known only to God—people we have known and loved who have done God’s work of love and service in this world. Such unknown saints may include our own friends and family.
On All Saints’, it is the church’s custom to remember and honor all of the holy ones of God. Therefore, I invite you on Friday, November 1
st
to have a conversation with your child about the special people who influenced your life. Maybe you, like me, consider your grandmother to be ‘saintly.’ After all, if it wasn’t for her, I don’t know that my faith would be the same. I believe through this discussion we help our children to recognize the goodness of others. In sharing your stories and by hearing how you were influenced by people in your lives, our children witness a powerful example of faith. Is there a better conversation to be had on a Friday night with our children? I don’t believe so.