The Solemnity of All Saints

This feast first honored martyrs. In the early centuries the only criterion to sainthood was popular acclaim, even when the bishop’s approval became the final step in placing a commemoration on the calendar. The first papal canonization occurred in 993; the lengthy process now required to prove extraordinary sanctity took form in the last 500 years. Today, All Saints Day honors the obscure as well as the famous—the saints each of us have known.