Well, it that time of year again. My third favorite holiday after Christmas and Easter: Reformation Day! It is a day when we protestant Christians ought to be celebrating the day when Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenburg castle. Last year my good friend Curtis, back in the homeland of Vancouver, took my suggestion to celebrate Reformation day quite seriously. He had his wife shave his head like a monk, donned a cloak, and nailed 95 Theses to his office door. What's really cool is that he goes to work by public transit! What was launched by Martin Luther so long ago could not be stopped and today we evangelicals have the benefit of the Reformers' actions against the tyranny of oppresive Catholisism. The Reformers announced that salvation was by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone and all matters of life and faith were found in the authority of scripture alone. This is why my library is full of the writings of Reformers and I consider myself to be a reformational Christian...always reforming. Spain was not overtly conquered by the reformation though they printed the Spanish Reina Valera (protestant bible) before the King James was produced. Though there were Spanish reformers such as Juan de Valdéz, Spanish reformers had to face a brutal inquisition. Hence when Spain was conquering the new world, they took only their brutal form of Catholisism with them. It really has not been until the last 100 years that the reformation arrived in Latin America with Presbyterian and Baptist Missionaries from Anglo-American.
Sadly, Mexicans and many Catholic followers celebrate Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead. It is a three day "celebration" that venerates deceased ancestors. We have seen many vendors in the mall and along the streets who are selling items for family altars for their deceased relatives: orange or burgandy marigolds (the flower of death), candy sugar skulls or coffins, chocolate skulls, tequila, incense, special sweet bread that is anise and orange flavored and shaped like a pile of bones and has a tiny plastic skeleton baked inside the dough, miniature furniture and pottery, paper-mache skeletons, and candles. These altars are also set up at public schools. Families visit cemetaries and spend the day. Tombstones are cleaned and repainted, flowers replaced, special games are played by the children, songs sung, prayers offered, and fond memories are retold. November 1 is commonly the day to remember children who have died and November 2 remembers adults who have died. Jugs of water and food are tied and hung outside homes for dead that are returning but who have no living relatives to provide them offerings on family altars. Marigold petals are strewn on the ground from the gravesite to the front door of the family's home to help the ancestors find their way. Newspapers have articles/poems revealing politicians' "skeletons" i.e. having spent municipal funds on the lottery.
The whole celebration is considered to be a Mexican tradition where Mexicans interact with the concept of death without fear but even to the point of humor. In fact, it is a Catholic religious practise that blended with existing Aztec beliefs about the dead. As we were doing errands with Moises, we were able to hear his excellent biblical explanation that he gave to a young believer in response to her question: "As a christian, I shouldn't have an altar, should I? My whole family has done this each year for as long as I can remember... and I feel like I should though I don't think that it is the right thing for me to do now that we are christians." We said goodbye as she went into her home to further study her bible.
1 comment:
Japanese have a three day celebration of ancestors in August. The sad thing is that in Mexico the church is part of it. Here it is people who have never heard the Truth or had any interaction with a church. Many Christians here struggle also with how to honor their families without dishonoring Christ.
Praying for your family
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