Sixth Grade
Worksheets
All Saints' Day
All Saints' Day
Reading Comprehension for November 1
What is the reason for a holiday? Usually, holidays are created to remember a person or event. In America, July 4th is a celebration of the country's independence. On July 24th in many South American countries, the life of Simon Bolivar is remembered and celebrated. Are there many holidays in your country? Imagine if there were so many holidays, you weren't able to keep up with them. There was a time in the Catholic Church that there were too many holidays to remember. So they crammed them all into one day.
Do you know what a saint is? According to the Catholic Church, a saint is someone who has lived a particularly good and noble life. A saint has been approved for sainthood by the church leadership, including the Catholic Church's leader, the pope. The Roman Catholic Church has named many saints. If ancient saints are counted, the number goes as high as 10,000. Not counting the ancients, there are about 3,000 Catholic saints. There was a time that many of these saints had their own holiday.
The origin of All Saints' Day is often debated. The earliest account of a "day for the saints" goes back to May 13 in 609 or 610 AD. It was on that day that Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon in Rome to Mary (Jesus Christ's mother) and all church martyrs. A martyr is someone who dies as a result of a belief. On May 13 ever since, Romans celebrate this day of remembrance of Mary and the martyrs.
