Today is All Souls Day [also called Defuncts Day) and its a little morbid if you ask me. Its about commemorating the dead. Yesterday was All Saints Day, when we commemorated the saints in Christ that have died. Today the horizon widens and its basically anyone who died, whether they were saints or not. Its more of a Roman Catholic holiday since it requires a belief in Purgatory to fully participate. There is a Office for the Dead, There are recipes like Beans for the Dead, and Dead Bone Cookies and I think i found Bread for the Dead. Of course there are special prayers. The Eastern Orthodox have a number of these events during the year and the Anglicans, after the Reformation, decided to morph it with All Saints Day to make one holiday. Thats kinda where I end up. I don’t believe in Purgatory but i do believe there will be a time of judgment for us all where our works will be tested with fire. I cant find anything that tells us we can accelerate anyones judgement with our prayers or our works. But I think we should remember the dead and honour them.
Celtic Daily Prayer Bible Verses: Psalm 25:4, Jeremiah 31:20, Revelation 12:12-18
One Year Bible Blog not only has daily readings but has a blog with thoughts, images and a place for you to comment.
This is the second day of my year long pilgrimage through the feasts, rhythms, celebrations, disciplines and events of the Christian calendar in all its forms. I realize that since there will be a lot of cooking invovled, i will need to give warning.
For example, tomorrow is St Huberts Day where we eat some venison to celebrate Huberts love of hunting. You probably dont have any venison in your fridge so tomorrow, when i suggest we eat venison, you will curse me for not giving you warning. Fair enough. I need to get my act together and write some of these in advance, as well as letting you know how to be prepared.
But think of it this way. The official Christian calendar begins in a months time with Advent so . . . we have a month to get our lives, our journals, and our KITCHENS ready for that active season and for the year that follows. Still want to join the rhythm? Cool. Let me know what else i can do.
Oh – and I am using the category “Rhythm” for these posts.
Technorati Tags: christian, all souls day
Wish I could share. I’ve got a freezer full of venison.
I am looking forward to reading about traditional dishes throughout the calendar. But, Andrew, would it be possible to make these even more relevant to contemporary culture by at least mentioning how they can be cooked more healthily? As obesity is such a problem in the West I can’t help but think that we now need to be careful in this way when re-discovering the feasts.