Here's a picture of the weather lady on the local news yesterday. She dressed up as a dead person, a common costume seen here during the Day of the Dead festivities. This holiday traditionally starts at midnight on October 31st and runs thru November 2nd.
After giving the weather forecast for different cities in Mexico, she read off a calavera (literally means "skull," but also refers to a short poem mocking death). The verses mentioned the news staff, referring to ways they had died, what their tombstones read, and what it felt like to be six feet under.
The Day of the Dead celebration in Mexico has a long history. The Aztecs' version of it lasted for an entire month in summer. It was overseen by Mictecacihuatl, a goddess who was said to be the Lady of the Dead.
When the Spaniards arrived, they modified the celebration and changed the dates to coincide with All Saints' Day on November 1st and All Souls' Day on November 2nd. The result, a combination of ancestor worship and other activities that treat death lightly, is now known as the Day of the Dead.
Most public schools have children do an activity for the holiday, such as make an altar to honor the dead in their family. Altars are also set up in homes and even appear in government buildings. Families prepare the favorite foods of loved ones who have passed away and set it by the altar. They believe that their loved one's spirit passes by and takes in the food.
In addition to food made for the dead, you'll find candy skulls and skeletons set on altars. Candles are lit, prayers are said, and pan de muerto (dead bread) is often distributed.
So how do we, as Lutherans, deal with ancestor worship? Perhaps the answer best lies in the following story:
Last Saturday, Missionary Ralph Martens received this drawing from one of his Catechism students. Look closely and you'll see that above the skull, she wrote: "Happy Death's Day!"
Missionary Martens accepted the skull and crepe paper flower that came with it. He then explained that only a Christian can have a truly Happy Death's Day. As Paul reminds us, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21 NIV).
Well said, Missionary Martens. And what good motivation for us to keep working in Mexico. We want to bring the message of eternal life with Jesus to as many as possible here before Judgment Day comes.
After giving the weather forecast for different cities in Mexico, she read off a calavera (literally means "skull," but also refers to a short poem mocking death). The verses mentioned the news staff, referring to ways they had died, what their tombstones read, and what it felt like to be six feet under.
The Day of the Dead celebration in Mexico has a long history. The Aztecs' version of it lasted for an entire month in summer. It was overseen by Mictecacihuatl, a goddess who was said to be the Lady of the Dead.
When the Spaniards arrived, they modified the celebration and changed the dates to coincide with All Saints' Day on November 1st and All Souls' Day on November 2nd. The result, a combination of ancestor worship and other activities that treat death lightly, is now known as the Day of the Dead.
Most public schools have children do an activity for the holiday, such as make an altar to honor the dead in their family. Altars are also set up in homes and even appear in government buildings. Families prepare the favorite foods of loved ones who have passed away and set it by the altar. They believe that their loved one's spirit passes by and takes in the food.
In addition to food made for the dead, you'll find candy skulls and skeletons set on altars. Candles are lit, prayers are said, and pan de muerto (dead bread) is often distributed.
So how do we, as Lutherans, deal with ancestor worship? Perhaps the answer best lies in the following story:
Last Saturday, Missionary Ralph Martens received this drawing from one of his Catechism students. Look closely and you'll see that above the skull, she wrote: "Happy Death's Day!"
Missionary Martens accepted the skull and crepe paper flower that came with it. He then explained that only a Christian can have a truly Happy Death's Day. As Paul reminds us, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21 NIV).
Well said, Missionary Martens. And what good motivation for us to keep working in Mexico. We want to bring the message of eternal life with Jesus to as many as possible here before Judgment Day comes.
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