Churches celebrate All Saints' Day after Halloween

SALT LAKE CITY — After the ghosts and goblins go to bed on Saturday night, Sunday dawns with another celebration that helps give Halloween its name.

All Saints' Day is held on Nov. 1, the day after All Hallows' Eve, more commonly known as Halloween. While Halloween has transformed into a costumed holiday for children to hunt for candy, the holy day afterward is still celebrated by some Christian denominations.

Originally observed by the Catholic Church, All Saints' Day was a day of remembering all saints who made it into heaven. Over time, Protestant churches shifted the observance to remember all those who have passed since the previous year.

Orthodox Christian churches do not celebrate All Saints' Day this late in the year; instead, they celebrate it on the first Sunday after Pentecost.

Halloween can be seen as a "spoof" of the devil, according to Rev. Dr. Hank Malone with St. John's Lutheran Church in Salt Lake City. He said the night before All Saints' Day is a day to make fun of the devil, since the threat of death loses its sting and the grave loses its victory, thanks to Jesus Christ.

"We take a moment to remember what the struggle was and the recovery of salvation by faith in Christ and his work," Malone said.

St. John's Lutheran Church held a special dinner Saturday afternoon in Ogden with other local churches, but Malone said they will return to Salt Lake City for their Sunday services.

Pastor Kelsie Parrish with the First United Methodist Church said she will be reading a list of people the community lost over the last year as part of the Liturgy during Holy Communion.

"This is a very holy weekend and a very sacred time of year," Parrish said.

First United Methodist held a memorial service Saturday afternoon for a member of its church community and will hold another one on Sunday.

The Sacred Heart Catholic Church held a Day of the Dead and All Saints' Dance on Saturday night in preparation for All Saints' Day on Sunday.

The choir at the Cathedral of the Madeleine will be singing "O quam gloriosum" by Tomás Luís de Victoria and Benjamin Britten's "Festival Te Deum" during its 11 a.m. Sunday Mass.

On Monday, which is also celebrated as All Souls' Day, a diocesan-wide Catholic Mass will be held at Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery presided over by Father Tai Nguyen at noon to commemorate all the faithful departed.

These and other celebrations will be held in different Christian denominations across the entire world, something that Parrish said helps unite the body of Christ.

"Knowing that all of our churches around the world are going to be taking Holy Communion at the same time and honoring our loved ones at the same time helps us remember that we are the body of Christ and we are in communion with heaven and with those who came before us," she said.