This All Saints’ resource list is the second part of a two part piece from the Rev. Mike DiMarcangelo of Church of the Vine. To check out part one, click here. 

Building on these theological considerations for All Saints’ Day, I pray that the following list of traditions and additional ideas for celebrating the feast might help you pastor your congregation toward greater love of the church and Jesus:  

  • Baptisms or the Renewal of Baptismal Vows – Because All Saints’ Day commemorates all those baptized throughout history, it is appropriately considered one of four Baptismal Feasts (in addition to Easter Vigil, the Day of Pentecost, and the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord, which is the First Sunday after the Epiphany). Though it is likely too late to prepare candidates for baptism on All Saints’ Day 2018 if your church has not already planned on doing so, you could instead hold a Renewal of Baptismal Vows. The Renewal is traditionally done during the Easter Vigil, but it may also be used during any of the baptismal feasts. If so, it would replace the Nicene Creed. See BCP 1979 pp. 292-294 or the separate “Renewal of Baptismal Vows” document on the ACNA Texts for Common Prayer page.
  • Reading a Necrology or List of Saints – During the All Saints’ Day liturgy, many parishes will name those in the community who have died over the course of the last year. Other parishes will read off a list of saints. If you opt for the latter, you might compile a list of names both ancient and modern, local and global, male and female, known and unknown, that fully attests to the grandeur and multifaceted beauty of the body of Christ. You could ask a variety of voices from within the congregation to read this list to further stress the diversity of God’s kingdom.
    • If you decide to read a list of those who have died in your community within the last year, you could invite parishioners and even non-churchgoers, neighbors, and community leaders to submit names. You could also invite these neighbors to join you in worship on All Saints’ Day to commemorate these people who have passed away and, in doing so, provide space for people to grieve, pray over them in their grief, and love these parishioners and neighbors in Jesus’ name. After worship, host a meal or some other hospitable event to further extend love to those grieving. This option might be particularly appropriate if you live in a town or city where recent violence, natural disasters, or unexpected deaths have disrupted the community’s life.  
    • Where might you include the reading of a list in the liturgy? If your church is using the BCP 1979, Eucharistic Prayer D (p. 372) provides space to both remember those who have died and to name saints. Eucharistic Prayer B (p. 367) also offers a space to commemorate a saint, but the structure is not particularly accomodating to reading a list. A better option might be reading it during the sixth and final petition of the prayers of the people, which is dedicated to “the departed (with commemoration of a saint when appropriate).”
    • You might toll a bell at the reading of each name. Or, depending on the length of the list, you could play music as the names are read and sing a contemplative refrain at certain intervals. The Taize songs “O Lord, Hear My Prayer” and “Jesus, Remember Me” are good options that come to mind, especially the latter one.
  • Telling Stories of the Saints – In the first centuries of the church, reading the acts of the martyrs, who were the first saints, became a way of communing with them. Such readings were most at home in liturgical settings, and Polycarp established the tradition of reciting martyrs stories on their birthdays. We might follow this tradition by intentionally incorporating martyr’s and other saints’ stories in sermons more regularly, beginning with All Saints’ 2018. I have seen one variation of this at All Saints’ Cathedral in Long Beach, CA, where Fr. Scott Pederson’s homilies at Wednesday Evensong services focus on the story of a saint whose feast day occurs during the respective week. What your church might do is use All Saints’ Day 2018 as a launching point for similar weekly or regular commemorations of saints.
    • Of course, telling saints’ stories need not only occur during the liturgy. This can also be held during a meal or another gathering on or near All Saints’ Day. For children, parents or Sunday school leaders might purchase a book of saints so that individual stories can be read occasionally along with a Bible story.  
    • If you tell saints’ stories, consider how the stories you choose to tell can expand people’s understanding of the communion of saints and the reign and rule of the Kingdom of God. Do the individuals you talk about adequately attest to the diversity of God’s people, even those who are hard for you to love? Might you, for instance, include stories of saints from evangelical non-denominational, Episcopal, or other contexts that members of your parish may currently hold in low esteem?
    • Telling stories could be done in the form of touring a building, cemetary, or the neighborhood in which you worship. Ask different people to tell stories of local saints as you stand in the spaces they occupied. You can invite neighbors and friends of the church to help lead or participate in this storytelling. This could present an opportunity to develop relationships with those outside the church and learn about their joys, sorrows, and how you might share Jesus’ love and meet the wider community’s needs through acts of service.
  • Images & Objects – We Anglicans love beautiful images and objects, especially those that direct us toward deeper adoration and worship of God. The Icon of the Sunday of All Saints is just this type of image. See this page for the Greek Orthodox Church’s description of the icon.  
    • In a 2017 Always Forward Podcast interview, Fr. Justin Read-Smith of the Community of St. Columba in Missoula, MT reflects on icons as kinds of family pictures for the communion of saints, displayed in churches to stir up memories and stories of our loved ones from the family of God throughout history. On All Saints’ Day we can create a display of “family pictures,” which might include icons, other images of known and unknown saints, photos of loved ones recently deceased, or other commemorative objects. I’ve read of some churches displaying these pictures and heirlooms on the altar, but I’m inclined to think that such a practice would confuse the distinct centrality of the Eucharist in our worship. Instead, you can set up a table elsewhere in the worship space.
    • One can imagine a creative combination of reading a necrology or list of saints with a family picture/heirloom table. For instance, when saints’ names are read during the prayers of the people or Eucharistic Prayer D, someone could simultaneously place out images that correspond with the read names. Or, before the start of the liturgy, parishioners and neighbors could place images of loved ones on the table whose names they would later speak out loud during the reading of a list.
  • Incense – Many churches use incense on All Saints’ Day as a sign of the communion of saints’ prayers rising up to God (Psalm 141:2; Revelation 5:8).
  • Vigil of All Saints’ in The Book of Occasional Services – In addition to celebrating All Saints’ Day, you can also hold a Vigil of All Saints’ the night before. If you do not own the Book of Occasional Services, an (admittedly ugly) online version of the liturgy is available here.
  • Song Recommendations – Certainly there are dozens of songs that would be wonderful to sing on All Saints’ Day. But if you are struggling to find some options, here are a few classic hymns with theologically rich lyrics worth considering:
    • “For All the Saints”
    • “The Church’s One Foundation”
    • “Oh for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”
    • “Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones”

Thank you Kyler Schubkegel, our wonderful Assistant Liturgist and Music Ministry Intern at Church of the Vine, for these suggestions!

Additional Resources

  • Read a clear and concise answer to the question “What is All Saints’ Day?” on the Anglican Pastor blog.
  • In this article I barely touch on the history of All Saints’ Day. If interested in the topic, the wikipedia entry on the subject is a start. You can also learn about All Souls’ Day, a celebration that English reformers merged with All Saints’. This celebration has since been partially restored by American Anglicans as “The Commemoration of All Faithful Departed” in the BCP 1979, an optional extension of All Saints’. If interested, here is an Episcopal priest’s reflection on and endorsement of the observance.

Painting by Fra Angelico in the 15th century. Public Domain.