The Origins of All Saints Day and the Consecration of the Pantheon in Rome as a Church in AD 608

The Basilica of Santa Maria ad Martyres (aka, the Pantheon) in Rome as it looks today.

The Feast of All Saints as we know it today has its origins in that period of chaos and transition between Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages. One of the milestones in the development of the Feast took place in the year AD 608 when Pope Boniface IV consecrated the formerly pagan temple known as the Pantheon in Rome to Our Lady and All the Saints.

The Pantheon, of course, is that marvelous architectural monument to Roman ingenuity which has somehow managed to survive the scourge of time and come down to us practically intact. Originally built as a temple to all the gods by Augustus Caesar's greatest general, Marcus Agrippa, the Pantheon would burn down and be completely reconstructed by the emperor Hadrian in the early 2nd century AD. In that form, it would remain a silent witness to the climactic moments of Roman history, including the Crisis of the Third Century, the persecution of Christians under Decius, Valerian and Maximian, the rise and defeat of Maxentius, and the victorious advent of Constantine the Great.

Yet even after the conversion of Rome to Christianity, the Pantheon would remain a pagan temple for another 80 years. The temples were finally shuttered by Theodosius the Great in the late 4th century, so the Pantheon likely existed as a fortress-like hulk for 200 years as the city around it became universally Christian. Devout residents of Rome likely viewed the darkened, abandoned temple as a demon-infested haunt, and an anonymous Latin sermon about the consecration says that "the Romans were so thoroughly terrified that they customarily did not dare to go near the temple even at noon."

It wasn't until the early years of the 7th century AD that a change would occur at a time when the usurping tyrant, Phocas, unleashed his brutally inept reign upon a Roman Empire on the brink of dissolution. Rome during this time was still nominally part of the Empire. With the climax of the Gothic Wars in AD 555, the Roman Empire was briefly re-established in all of Italy. But by the time of Pope Gregory the Great, in the 580s, everything was once again falling apart. The Italian peninsula was overrun by an insuperable horde of Lombards who conquered and settled practically all the land outside of the major cities. The Empire hung on to the city of Rome—but barely.  

In Constantinople, Phocas had taken the throne as beneficiary of a rebellion which toppled the reigning emperor, Maurice. The unfortunate Maurice would be executed by Phocas, along with his wife and eight children. With more than enough crises to deal with in the East, Phocas was anxious to maintain whatever political alliances he could in the West. 

19th century engraving of Pope Boniface IV cleansing "the ancient filth of idolatry" from
the Pantheon and consecrating the building to the Ever Virgin Mary and All the Saints. 

Boniface IV became Pope during the seemingly endless troubles of the early 7th century. With the political authority of the Empire once again waning in Italy, the Popes had been forced to take a more active role in defending and caring for the city. When Boniface requested that Phocas grant the Pantheon to the Church, Phocas likely felt that this was an easy way to demonstrate his authority and keep Boniface and Rome solidly on his side. In his celebrated Ecclesiastical Annals written in the late 16th century, Caesar Cardinal Baronius gives a summary of what happened, based originally on the biography of Boniface from the Liber Pontificalis of the 9th century AD: 

Boniface IV, Pope, who dedicated the Pantheon to God.

In the six hundred and seventeenth year of the Indiction, Boniface, from the city of Valeria in the region of the Marsi, the son of John the physician, was created Pope on the eighteenth day of September, being the fourth of that name. Immediately he turned his own house into a monastery and enriched it with revenues.

When he saw that the Emperor Phocas was more favorably disposed toward the Roman Pontiffs than previous rulers had been, he ventured—what none of the Roman Pontiffs before him had attempted—to ask the emperor to grant him the Pantheon, that noble temple of Rome. He wished, after it had been cleansed of the ancient filth of idolatry, to consecrate it in honor of the Mother of God, the Blessed Mary, and of all the holy martyrs.

The emperor freely granted this request, and Boniface, having obtained what he desired, happily accomplished it without delay. These things are taken from Anastasius [author of that section of the Liber Pontificalis].

Thus that marvelous building, celebrated by the praises of so many ancient writers—constructed by Marcus Agrippa, consul, in the time of the Emperor Augustus, and dedicated to Jupiter the Avenger—at length passed into the service of the Christian religion after six hundred and thirty-two years.

Indeed, it had remained untouched by demolishers—(as has been said) though it had been the dwelling-place of demons—because of the solid strength of its construction, which made it stand firm. Yet it had not yet been dedicated to Christian use, since such a conversion seemed execrable to some.

For we see from Saint Gregory that at first he had ordered that the temples of idols among the newly converted English nation be destroyed; but later he permitted that, for the sake of the new planting of faith, those same buildings should remain intact—provided that, after solemn purification, they be consecrated and adapted to sacred worship.

So likewise the Pantheon, being transformed into a church and consecrated, and ennobled by the title of the Mother of God, and enriched with the relics of martyrs brought from cemeteries outside the city, obtained the name that it should be called the Temple of the Mother of God and of All Martyrs—a venerable title which it retains to this day. [Ecclesiastical Annals of Baronius, Volume 11, page 77]

A similar account may be found in the History of the Langobards (Lombards), an early 8th century work by Paul the Deacon. Other accounts refer to Boniface translating 28 cartloads of relics of various martyrs from the catacombs to a porphyry niche beneath the high altar of the newly-consecrated church. The date of this consecration (May 13) would become a day to commemorate all the saints in Rome, which would be moved to November 1 and become a universal feast throughout the Holy Roman Empire by Louis the Pious in AD 835.

Note that Baronius's account above refers to the letter of Gregory the Great written in AD 601 that permitted the British converts to Catholicism to consecrate their pagan buildings to Christian usage. The full letter may be found here: "That the nation, seeing that their temples are not destroyed, may remove error from their hearts." ~ St. Gregory the Great's letter to St. Mellitus on reconsecrating pagan temples as Christian churches, AD 601

The Pantheon would continue to exist as the Basilica of Santa Maria ad Martyres for the next 1,400 years. The building's remarkably solid construction and continuing service as a Catholic Church help to explain its wonderful state of preservation. 

Aside from the martyrs whose remains were entombed at the consecration of the building as a church, numerous other more modern Italians are interred within these sacred precincts. Most notable among these are the artist Raphael along with several other Renaissance-era painters and sculptors, Italian Kings Vittorio Emanuele II, his son, Umberto I, and Umberto's wife, Queen Margherita. 

We should let the Basilica's history and conversion stand as a metaphor for all of us Catholics, who were rescued by Christ from the filth of idolatry and who should remain standing steadfast to the end with the help of our Blessed Lady and the holy saints in Heaven.

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As Saint Alphonsus Liguori said, "Let us read the lives of the saints, and pride shall depart from us. There we shall find the great things that they have done, at the sight of which we shall feel ashamed of the little we have done." 

A good place to start is the book, I Am a Christian: Authentic Accounts of Christian Martyrdom and Persecution from the Ancient Sources. Reading about the saints and their works is a beautiful way to commemorate the feast of All Saints, and directly contrary to the worldly culture's insistence on tying the celebration of the vigil of the holy day with the works of darkness.

The Catholic Origins of Halloween

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Contrary to popular misconceptions, All Saints Day and its vigil, Halloween, are not the same as the pagan feast known as Samhain. The feast of All Saints developed independently among Christian churches within the territory of the later Roman Empire. Halloween is merely the vigil of the feast of All Saints -- hence, All Hallows Eve.

Samhain, meanwhile, was theoretically a festival of those pagans in Celtic regions outside the Roman Empire, specifically Ireland, about which almost nothing is known prior to the 12th century AD.

The two feasts seem to share a common date, but beyond that, their provenance is quite different.

If you run into someone who insists that Halloween is actually the pagan celebration of Samhain, ask them to provide a primary source reference demonstrating that point. They will struggle to do so because the earliest extant literary references to the pagan festival don't occur until the Middle Ages, and much of what passes for descriptions of pagan Samhain traditions and practices are nothing more than fanciful modern imaginings. Ronald Hutton, writing in The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain offers the following about traditional pagan practices during Samhain according to sources from the 10th through 12th centuries:

In Serglige Con Culaind, which exists in a twelfth-century version, it is stated that the feis of the Ulaid (Ulstermen) lasted ‘three days before Samuin and the three days after Samuin and Samuin itself. They would gather at Mag Muirthemni, and during these seven days there would be nothing but meetings and games and amusements and entertainments and eating and feasting.” These activities (together with a great deal of boasting and brawling) are precisely those portrayed at the feis in this and other accounts of it. No doubt there were religious observances as well, but none of the tales ever portrays any, and a text like Sanas Chormaic, which is so informative on Beltane, furnishes nothing for the winter festival. [Hutton: The Stations of the Sun]

It should be noted that the above passage was written by a scholar who is largely sympathetic to the pagan side of the argument, but is honest enough to admit that there is no ancient evidence to support it. Indeed, the holiday described in the 12th century source above seems to have more affinity to American Thanksgiving, with its feasts, games and brawling than All Hallows Eve.

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Meanwhile, there is considerable ancient literary evidence to support the Catholic feast of All Saints and All Hallows Eve. The feast was originally celebrated on various dates in various churches as early as the 4th century AD, and began to be officially established on November 1 in many places throughout Europe by the early Middle Ages.

Here is a passage from a homily of Saint Bede's written in the early 8th century:

"Today, beloved, we celebrate in the joy of one solemnity, the festival of All Saints, in whose companionship the heaven exults; in whose guardianship the earth rejoices; by whom triumphs the Holy Church is crowned; whose confession, as braver in its passion, is also brighter in its honor—because while the battle increased, the glory of them that fought in it was also augmented. And the triumph of martyrdom is adorned with the manifold kind of its torments, because the more severe the pangs, the more illustrious also were the rewards; while our Mother, the Catholic Church, was taught by her Head, Jesus Christ, not to fear contumely, affliction, death, and more and more strengthened—not by resistance, but by endurance—inspired all of that illustrious number who suffered imprisonment or torture, with one and equal ardor to fight the battle for triumphal glory. 

"O truly blessed Mother Church! so illuminated by the honor of divine condescension, so adorned by the glorious blood of triumphant martyrs, so decked with the inviolate confession of snow white virginity! Among its flowers neither roses nor lilies are wanting. Endeavor now, beloved, each for yourselves, in each kind of honor, to obtain your own dignity—crowns, snow white for chastity, or purple for passion. In those heavenly camps, both peace and war have their own flowers wherewith the soldiers of Christ are crowned."

The rest of this sermon may be read here.

As for the date of November 1, here is a quote from the Chronicon of Sigebert of Gembloux, detailing the official movement of All Saints Day to November 1 throughout the Holy Roman Empire as of the year AD 835:

DCCCXXXV: Monente Gregorio Papa et omnibus episcopis assentientibus, Ludovicus Imperator statuit, ut in Gallia et Germania festivitas Omnium Sanctorum in kalendis Novembris celebrarentur, quam Romani ex instituto Bonefacii Papae celebrabant. 

Forgive my rough translation: 835 AD: Following the instruction of Pope Gregory [IV] and the assent of all the bishops, Emperor Louis [the Pious] established that in France and Germany the feast of All Saints would be celebrated on the first of November, when the Romans celebrate following the custom established by Pope Boniface [IV].

See the original here. 

A good summary of other references to All Saints Day in early Medieval sources may be found in this article on the Origins of All Saints and All Souls Day.

Writing from a more syncretist point of view not unsympathetic to the pagan side, Alexei Kondratiev says the following, which gives a plausible explanation of why, in Medieval times, those still holding semi-pagan beliefs may have consolidated their beliefs about the dead around All Saints/Souls day, following the lead of the Church:

“Whatever the specific elements had been that determined the proper date of the end-of harvest honoring of the dead in various places, by the ninth and tenth centuries the unifying influence of the Church had led to concentrating the rituals on November 1st and November 2nd. The first date was All Hallows, when the most spiritually powerful of the Christian community's dead (the Saints) were invoked to strengthen the living community, in a way quite consistent with pre-Christian thought. The second date, All Souls, was added on (first as a Benedictine practice, beginning ca. 988) as an extension of this concept, enlarging it to include the dead of families and local communities. Under the mantle of the specifically Christian observances, however, older patterns of ancestor veneration were preserved.” [Kondratiev: Samhain - Season of Death and Renewal]

This is an honest assessment that seems to capture quite well the actual history behind All Saints Day / Halloween and its relationship to co-existing pagan death rituals and ancestor worship.

As Catholics, we have not done a particularly good job informing the modern culture of the Christian meaning behind All Hallows Eve. As a result, we have ceded the field to the purveyors of popular culture who have turned the feast into a celebration of monsters, gore and neo-paganism. The correct response, in my opinion, is not to opt out completely, but to bring the holiday back to its uniquely Christian roots. Doing so will not only serve to dispel myths propagated by an increasingly hostile secular society, but will also help Catholics young and old to be inspired by the stories of "that illustrious number who suffered imprisonment or torture, with one and equal ardor to fight the battle for triumphal glory."

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One idea I particularly like is to read more about the lives of the saints during this time of year, particularly with your kids. Here is a list of about 40 novels and short biographies of a variety of Catholic saints and heroes, courtesy of The Young Catholic's Bookshelf.

Or, if that's too much for you, try reading this one new book about the lives of the early martyrs drawn from the most trustworthy eye-witness sources: I Am A Christian: Authentic Accounts of Christian Martyrdom and Persecution from the Ancient Sources.

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Or, if you'd prefer, here is an inexpensive booklet which will allow you to celebrate All Hallow's Eve like a traditional Catholic (imagine that!). All Hallow's Eve Prayers and Devotions is a new booklet by our friends at Ancilla Press that combines Celtic, English, and Latin traditions in a unique format. It provides adults and children with an unashamedly Catholic and  historically authentic way to celebrate the beginning of Hallowtide, and includes the full version of "Black Vespers", an old Breton tradition for the afternoon of Halloween, three prayers against evil spirits, witchcraft, and spells, and more. Click here to order a copy or to find out more.

Halloween is the vigil of the Catholic feast of All Saints

Remember, Halloween is the vigil of the Catholic holy days of  All Saints (November 1) and All Souls (November 2) which follow immediately after. These feasts are remembrances of our beloved dead—those who are among the saints in heaven and those who remain in the cleansing fire, awaiting admittance to paradise.

These are purely Catholic holidays with no connection to ancient pagan practices, as many ill-informed modern folks like to claim. Read more about the Catholic origins of Halloween here, and about the ancient origins of the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory, Part I: "I knew my brother was suffering", here and Part II: "I beseech you to pray unto the Lord for me, here.

The church of Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini is famous for its ossuary crypt which displays the remains of over 4,000 Capuchin monks who went to their eternal reward between AD 1500 and 1870. Among the remains is a plaque which reads: “What you are now, we used to be; what we are now, you will be.” This is a reminder to the faithful of their mortality and the capricious nature of death, recalling the words of Christ in the parable: “Thou fool! This very night your life shall be required of you.”

The Man Fully Alive blog offers a brief but poignant description of a visit to the crypt of Santa Maria Concezione dei Cappuccini.

An excellent summary of the origins of All Saints Day and All Hallows Eve may be found at The Catholic Home and Garden site.

Wishing you a blessed and contemplative All Hallows Eve, All Saints Day and All Souls Day.

*Note, this image isn't anything officially sent out from the church or from the Capuchins. I created it myself.