Like August 15th, July 14th and May 1st, November 1st is one of the eleven public holidays listed in the French Labour Code. But why is All Saints' Day a public holiday in France? And what exactly does it mean? We tell you all about it.
November 1 is the Catholic feast of All Saints. Religiously, this day is an opportunity for Christians to celebrate all the saints, known and unknown. " Every November 1st, the Church honors the countless number of those who have been living and luminous witnesses to Christ ", says the website of theCatholic Church in France.
Like other Catholic feasts, the origins of All Saints' Day go back a long way. However, its origins are not to be found in biblical texts. Established by the Church, All Saints' Day initially celebrated all those who died as martyrs. Later, it was extended to all known and unknown saints. In the year 610, Pope Boniface IV decided to establish the regular commemoration of saints on May 13.
A little over a century later, November 1 was finally chosen as the date for commemorating the saints. Pope Gregory III made the change official. Around 835, Pope Gregory IV went so far as to impose that the feast be celebrated worldwide. In the 20th century, with Pius X at the helm of the papacy, All Saints Day became one of the eight Christian feasts. It also became a public holiday.
For the record, All Saints' Day was temporarily suppressed during the French Revolution, before being reinstated in 1802 by Napoleon.
Although November 1st is not to be confused with November 2nd, which honors the dead, many French people - believers and atheists alike - have adopted the custom of going to the graves of loved ones to put flowers on their graves.
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