Boston Archbishop Speaks at St. Paul for All Saint's Day

Archbishop of Boston Seán Patrick O’Malley joined members of the Catholic community for a celebration of All Saint’s Day on Friday at St. Paul Catholic Church in Harvard Square.

“That the cardinal is here today is a particular blessing,” said Rev. Matthew J. Westcott, the undergraduate chaplain at the Church of St. Paul. “He is the shepherd of the flock in Boston, and it’s a wonderful opportunity to hear his words in person.”

All Saint’s Day is celebrated every year the day after Halloween to commemorate Christian saints and spirits. Seated underneath the ceiling and stained glass adorned with images of holy persons, observers were visually reminded of the good works of known saints.

Gregory M. Malecha, a student at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences who attended the service, said the day was a celebration of saints as role models of the Catholic faith.

“We look to them to see how they dealt with various struggles,” he said.

The holiday is also meant to commemorate and honor the lives of those who may not have been formally recognized by the church but nonetheless walked in holiness.

“As Catholics we believe that saint’s souls are in heaven with God,” Westcott said. “This is obvious for the famous saints, but today is dedicated to saints we don’t know.”

The archbishop is one of 115 cardinals in a conclave that elected Pope Francis earlier this year and is one of eight cardinals chosen to advise the Pope on reforming the governance of the Church. Cardinal O’Malley visited Harvard Square as part of a special program of outreach and evangelization to young adults and college students.

In his homily at the Church of St. Paul, the Archbishop connected the recent Red Sox win at the World Series to the work of the community’s Catholic “teammates,” adding that “holiness demands a constant effort.”

“It is an important day for Catholics, but this service was obviously a really big deal with the Archbishop here,” said Curtis W. St. Pierre ’16, a self-identified Catholic. “It is nice to have the opportunity to get together in the community, and the Archbishop himself is really personable and nice to interact with.”

The service was also accompanied by the music of St. Paul's Choir School, the only Catholic choir school for boys in the United States.

—Staff writer Anneli L. Tostar can be reached at anneli.tostar@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @annelitostar.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

CORRECTION: Nov. 7, 2013

An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that 115 cardinals were elected by Pope Francis earlier this year. In fact, a conclave of 115 cardinals elected Pope Francis.