Dia de Muertos Celebrates the Resurrection

     The Mexican celebration of Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead) is not one of sadness and mourning. Instead, it is a joyful affirmation of the very heart of the Catholic religion - a celebration of life everlasting. Through the Resurrection, we triumph over death itself.

     A number of the colorful customs and traditions of the Hispanic All Souls celebration have crossed the border and are spreading throughout the United States. Toy skeletons, sugar skulls, and paper cut outs are beginning to make a November appearance in artistic displays in a number of cities. The ofrendas and traditional foods connected with the Mexican family celebrations have captured the imagination of many North Americans.

     Unlike Halloween, which is based on pagan beliefs and traditions, Dia de Muertos is not simply "sanitized witchcraft." The Mexican celebration of All Souls is one of the most sacred and revered days in the Mexican cycle of feasts. It stems from the ancient pre-Columbian belief that as long as one was remembered by family and friends, one continued to live. In celebrating the dead, they were kept alive.

     For Christ, and those united in his Body, the dead are alive; human solidarity reaches beyond death. The Church is the communion of the "holy ones" or "saints" who dwell on earth, in heaven, and in purgatory (Catechism of the Catholic Church, Nos. 946-962.) Each act of love profits all those who are united in Christ, just as every sin harms them (Catechism, No. 953.)

     All Souls' Day, a memorial feast commemorating all the souls of the faithful departed in a common celebration, was first begun at the Abbey of Cluny in 998. In 1003, it was recommended and approved by Pope Sylvester II, and from the eleventh to the fourteenth century the feast gradually spread throughout Europe. In the Western church, the feast was set for November 2 so that the memories of all the souls, both of the saints in heaven and the souls of those in purgatory, could be celebrated on two successive days. This could more clearly express the Christian belief in the communion of saints. (The Eastern rites commemorate the faithful departed during the Easter season.)

     Throughout the world, numerous customs and pious traditions were associated with the celebrations in honor of the dead. Almost all ethnic traditions include special prayers, decorations, foods, lights, and the visiting and cleaning of graves. Some groups distribute food to the poor on this day, and others visit graves of the "forgotten," ones, graves that would otherwise remain neglected and unadorned. In a number of places worldwide, there is the pious belief that the souls of the dead return to earth at this time. None of the traditions can match those of Mexico in their abundance of joyful and colorful customs.

     Father Virgil Elizondo, of San Antonio, Texas, says, "On the Day of the Dead, we laugh and play and joke with death; for us, it is an affirmation of the ultimate life, and our celebrations can deepen this aspect of our faith. On this day, we combine the pain of death with the joy of our loved one's life in God and in us. Dia de Muertos is an enrichment of the doctrine of the Communion of Saints, a personalization of our own household saints."

     Many of our practices surrounding death give comfort only to the living. Yet because of the bonds of the communion of saints, we can also help the departed. Praying for the dead does more than retain their presence in our thoughts; it is an act of mercy.

     We need reminders of our supernatural solidarity with the deceased. Father John Boscoe, csb, missioned at Tehuacan, Mexico says, "Praying for the dead begins with remembering the dead. The ofrenda is a visual way to bring the dead to mind in order to pray for them." He recalls the ofrendas (altars of the dead) and other customs he has seen during his mission years in the central and southern regions of Mexico.

     In Mexico, the celebration begins on November 1 when the souls of the angelitos - children - are remembered. On November 2, deceased adults are honored. Folklore tells that the spirits return to earth to visit, so elaborate preparations are made to welcome them with deep reverence and a great deal of warmth and humor. In some parts of Mexico, offerings of bread and water are hung outside the houses or placed in a corner of the church. Home altars include flowers, candles, food, and anything that is a special reminder, or was especially loved by, the family dead. Usually, photos of the dead are set on the altar. Special toys and images of skeletons abound. Traditional foods include mole, a spicy chicken dish, rich candies such as leche quemada (milk candy) and sugared pumpkin, and pan de muertos, bread of the dead. Popular shapes for the bread are the forms of men and women, a skull and crossbones, or a volcano spewing tears. On ofrendas dedicated to children who have died young, there are special toys such as a tiny coffin whose skeleton occupant pops up when a string is pulled. Masks, puppets, and small clay figurines of skeletons in various dress and poses are also added to the ofrenda.

     Calaveras, or skulls, come in many sizes. Skulls made of sugar are decorated fancifully with glitter and icing. Sometimes names are piped on with icing and the children exchange them as gifts.

     The word calaveras has the double meaning of skulls and scatterbrain. It is also the word for satirical poems. Another traditional activity is the giving of these poems from one friend to another, much as we exchange cards on St. Valentine's feast day. The calaveras often poke fun at politicians or other professionals and are elaborately illustrated with pictures of skeletons laughing and having a good time.

     Jose Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913) was a Mexican artist with a great talent for illustrating the life and character of his countrymen. Although he died relatively unrecognized, he was the inspiration for a number of Mexico's most famous modern artists. He and his publisher were fearless crusaders who fought for reforms, and whose scathing caricatures of dishonest politicians constantly kept them in hot water. Posada is particularly known for his illustrations of the calaveras filled with grinning, dancing cadavers miming every conceivable activity in human existence. •