No we are not thinking of any football team named after a saint of dubious credibility, but those good people who have died after spending their earthly life doing good for others.
Today we celebrate the feast called "All Saints Day", the day on which Catholics celebrate all the saints, known and unknown. It is no coincidence that last night we celebrated Halloween. Well, some people did. The name Halloween comes from the old English words which mean "Evening before All Halloweds" and is a surprisingly old feast. It arose out of the Christian tradition of celebrating the martyrdom of saints on the anniversary of their martyrdom. When martyrdoms increased during the persecutions of the late Roman Empire, local dioceses instituted a common feast day in order to ensure that all martyrs, known and unknown, were properly honoured.
But in fact today we remember all those people whom we knew in life who were good and lived a blessed life and have now assumed their rightful place in Heaven. They may not ever get canonised by the Church (this honour is seldom bestowed on anyone who has not lived a vowed life of celibacy, obedience to the Church and/or poverty) but they are never-the-less Saints, recognised for their holiness or goodness.
We ask God on this day to give us a share in their "goodness" and we ask them to intercede for us on our earthly pilgrimage. I remember today especially my beloved grandparents Jack & Nellie McGrath as well as Edward & Anne Lee (whom I have never met).
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