Dear Good Samaritans,

This weekend we will be entering into and celebrating a brief little season of the church year known as Allhallowtide. Most of us know these three days better as Halloween (All Hallows’ Eve), All Hallows’ (All Saints’), and All Souls’ Day. In the old English, hallow was simply another word for holy.

Many people are surprised to find out that Halloween is Christian in origin. And, in The Book of Occasional Services (a liturgical book in The Episcopal Church), we even find a service for All Hallows’ Eve.

This period of days is a time where we remember those who have gone before us in the faith—the saints and martyrs—but also the regular people like you and me.

If you spend enough time poking through religious art, you will probably come across something unusual. We’re accustomed to seeing saints depicted with round halos or a beautiful golden ring encircling their heads. But did you know there are also saints with square halos? I know that I, for one, was deeply curious as to why. What are we supposed to understand about a square-haloed saint?

In Christian art, a halo is meant to represent holiness, divine light, and participation in the life of God. Round halos—a circle without a beginning or an end—came to symbolize eternal life in heaven. But, a square halo is different. While still communicating the holiness, light, and life in trust and service to God, a square halo has a beginning and an end. So, artists began to use this symbol for a living person who has exhibited exceptional holiness during their lives.

The square halo was a way to honor someone’s holiness before they died. A square halo was a badge saying that this person is still walking the earth, but by their actions and disposition radiate divine grace. It was a way for a community to honor holy people who embrace a life of sanctity here and now. And, isn’t that what we are all called to? To live our lives the best that we can by loving God and our neighbor?

The square halo invites us to wonder: what if holiness isn’t only for the departed? What if we, too, can reflect the light of Christ while we are still alive?

I like to imagine that we are all walking around with invisible, yet square, halos. And each time we do something Christlike throughout our lives—where we feed the poor, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, love others, act mercifully—it is as if someone chips a little piece of the square off, making it rounder and rounder with each act of love and faith. That is, until it is a perfect circle.

So the next time you see a square halo, remember—it’s not just a sign of someone special long ago. It’s a reminder that sainthood begins now, wherever we are, whenever we live.

Peace,