Devotion - Wednesday, November 2

Having written about Reformation and All Saints', it seemed appropriate to continue the series and comment on today's festival - even though it is a festival observed by neighbors more than by us.

In Mexico, today is observed as the Day of the Dead. On this day, family members will make special pilgrimages to the graves of their family members. They will take with them the foods or drink enjoyed by the departed, leaving these on the graves.

Laura and I made our first trip to Mexico some six years ago. It was for the wedding of LCM Alums. It was an October wedding, weeks before Day of the Dead. We ventured into town and discovered all the decorations on sale for the upcoming holiday. We didn't know much about the tradition, by were intrigued by the skeletons dressed up to symbolize various professions, and numerous famous persons.

You might think it odd, but on that same visit, we left the hotel and walked behind the walled cemetery. What we found there was stark contrast to the orderly, sanitized cemeteries we have in the US. The graves were arranged somewhat haphazardly. The markers were not fancy, carved granite but hand poured concrete with names and dates carved with a stick. Some graves were like a mausoleum; elaborate brickwork with glass enclosures protecting photos or personal items we assumed were put there to acknowledge the life of the deceased.

While we were walking around, we came upon a burial. The casket was small, probably that of a child. The mourners were not only carrying the casket, but also shovels. No attempts at denying death or burial; no professional funeral directors; here was a family doing what needed to be done for the one who had died. It was a terrifying scene; the thought of the loss experienced by the family. But at the same time it was very comforting; to see those who loved the one who had died caring for the body and placing it in the ground.

I don't know as much about the Day of the Dead as I would like. What I do know is that we do it a disservice when we buy our trinkets and see it as a day to party. Like All Saints Eve (Halloween), it is a day which brackets All Saints Day and draws its origins from the necessity of acknowledging death.

The promise of Christian faith is that death has lost its sting. That sting is not removed as a result of denying death, but as we look death squarely in the face. Day of the Dead seems to be a wonderful way of acknowledging how it is that those who have gone before us have shown us how to live. They may have died, but their presence continues to be felt and experienced every day of our lives. On one day, November 2, we visit their graves in order to acknowledge them as an ongoing part of our lives.