MARKED WITH THE SEAL OF THE SERVANTS OF GOD

SOLEMNITY OF ALL SAINTS - Revelation 7:2-4,9-14

In places where the first of November is not a holy day, the solemnity of All Saints is celebrated this Sunday. We may ask: What are we celebrating? 

The first reading, taken from the book of Revelation, speaks of a huge assembly “standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb”. The totality of the people of God - “a hundred and forty-four thousand”, that is twelve thousand times twelve - had been marked with a seal as being “the servants of our God”. The Saints are all those who are marked as “servants of God” Indeed, in baptism, we “were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ep 1:13) to be children of God. The members of the people of God are “a huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language”. They are standing “dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands.” And all proclaim God’s praise and sing his victory: “Victory to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” Then, everybody prostrates themselves in worship.

Today, all of us are called to join the divine worship taking place in heaven, giving thanks and praise to the Lord. With the angels and saints, we say: 

“Amen. Praise and glory 

and wisdom and thanksgiving 

and honour and power 

and strength to our God 

for ever and ever. Amen.”

Who are those dressed in white robes? They “are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Here on earth, all have to pass through the great tribulation, since all of us are being tested and all of us are being touched by the contamination of sin. However, in baptism we were washed in the blood of Christ, going through death with him to rise to eternal life with him. The Lord Jesus Christ shed his blood “for many for the forgiveness of sins.”

Marked with the seal of the Holy Spirit, we are children of God. Saint John says it very clearly in his first letter: God’s love for us is so great that he “lets us be called God’s children, and that is what we are.” One day, the glory of God will be manifested in us to the full and then “we shall be like him” (1 Jn 3:1-3).