ALL SOULS DAY: A DAY FOR THE DECEASED

Filipino culture place a lot of importance on family. Nearly all celebrations are preferred to be spent with family and friends. We don’t just place importance on the living but also on those who’ve passed on. This November 2nd, we give a moment of silence for prayer and thanks to our deceased relatives for the hardships, memories, and experiences they’ve had in their lifetime. 

Written by Aira Lao

November 2, 2022 | 6:00 P.M.

Every November 2nd, All Souls Day is celebrated. This holiday has Catholic origin as its history started with the celebration of All Saints Day. Back in the Middle Ages, Christians held a yearly feast to honor the Church’s saints and martyrs who passed and went to heaven. Over time, the specific date for the feast had become November 1st and came to be known as All Saint’s Day. For the Catholic Church, it is obligatory to celebrate this holiday to honor the hardship, devotion, and faith the saints and martyrs lived in their lifetimes.

Around the 10th century, St. Odilo of Cluny, a Catholic priest, instituted All Souls Day. Its focus was to pray and honor the souls of one’s deceased family members; honoring and remembering the good lives they had led as they were waiting in purgatory until they were to enter heaven. This yearly celebration became the final day of Allhallowtide—a period of time close to All Saint’s Day which consisted of All Hallow’s Eve and All Saint’s Day. It was perfect timing to celebrate those who have passed after the day people gave honor to the saints and martyrs of the Church. Hence, All Souls Day is celebrated every November 2nd.

Despite its Catholic origins, the celebration of All Souls day isn’t limited to Catholics. Each and every religion has their own way of honoring those who have passed. Being able to look back and honor one’s ancestors shows that one values not just family but the roots of which they came from. 

There are many ways in which people around the world celebrate this holiday. Going into details for each one is difficult as there is not an exact way one can celebrate this kind of day. Some families light candles at the foot of tombs or at the front of their houses to make the way to their homes for their deceased relatives. Flower petals are laid to resemble a pathway for the visiting souls finding the houses of their living relatives. Some cook different kinds of food and lay it out in front of the tombs for their deceased relatives to eat with them. For Catholics, prayers and masses are held on these days to honor the deceased. Muslims on the other hand have a night of immunity or deliverance, and they celebrate All Souls Day on March 13th as of this year 2022.

Filipinos go back home to their families for what they call “Undas.” Preparing altars and food and lighting candles are common practices Filipinos do during this holiday.

There are multiple methods people use to commemorate the deceased. Some dig up favorite items of their relatives and place them on their graves. Some Filipinos stay up all night praying beside the graves of their relatives (but due to Covid-19 restrictions during the early pandemic period, some cemeteries closed early to avoid overcrowding).  Now, as the restrictions are easing up and cemeteries allow a limited number of people to visit, Filipinos are able to celebrate All Souls Day alongside their relatives this November 2nd. Other ways people celebrate All Souls Day is through creating tributes like video edits, statues, or artworks in honor of their relatives.

Some may know this holiday for its other well known name: “The Day of the Dead.”  Plenty of movies talk about this day, and it is often in the Mexican or Spanish setting. A movie such as “Coco” is a great example of one. This holiday isn’t just limited to Spanish culture though, as various cultures around the world have their own variation of honoring their deceased relatives. 

Celebrating All Souls Day is a choice for everyone. Each family has their own way of honoring the deceased whether it is through common cultural practices or through personal family traditions. What matters is that on this very day, we remember and feel grateful for the lives that our ancestors and relatives have lived. Today, they live again!