CEE Story From The Mission Field
Hallowed Days in Poland
January 7, 2005
What is traditionally referred to as Halloween in America is actually a holy time in other places. It is not a day dominated by witches and ghouls and bags full of candy, but one that is hailed by the Catholic Church as a holy festival. Though it began as a day to honor saints and those martyred for their faith, it is now a special day when committed Catholics pray for the souls of deceased loved ones. It is their belief that if they have loved ones in limbo between hell and heaven, otherwise known as purgatory, they can intercede on their behalf and pray their souls into heaven. So to help and honor them on this day, flowers, wreaths, candles, and votive lights are placed on their graves and prayers are made for their salvation.
Growing up in a Catholic family, I remember visiting the cemetery on November 1 and following the procession led by a number of priests. There was one holding an oversized Bible, another swinging incense, and another sprinkling water on the graves, all of them chanting something unintelligible.
I remember little about this ceremony except that it made me very uncomfortable. Even then this practice did not make sense to me. Something inside told me that my eternal destination was no one’s responsibility but my own. Something this important would not be left up to chance or the dedication of my descendents.
Now as I serve the Lord in Catholic Poland, I see this tradition having such a hold on the lives of the people here. The cemeteries are full on this day. Some people are there just to keep family tradition alive, but many others truly place hope in their prayers and ceremony.
For my friend, “Kasha”, All Saints Day has changed meaning over the years. As a child, she recalled looking forward to this holiday as a time of family, fun and food, but there was also a serious side to this day.
"My mother’s first son was stillborn,” she said. “Each year, my mother would take us to cemetery where we would place candles at his gravesite. She told us that we were warming his feet. We felt like we were doing something good for our brother and we talked to him as if he were alive.”
During her teenage years, Kasha went through a rebellious stage when she rejected her parents’ beliefs. “I wanted to go to the disco to have fun,” she said. “I didn’t want to have anything to do with this gloomy tradition.”
This rebellion led her to seek answers to questions concerning her religious tradition and beliefs. Ultimately through a series of events over several years, her search led her to trust Jesus Christ, as her personal Lord and Savior. Today, this young woman observes All Saints Day differently by visiting with Christian friends and praying for her country. She said her heart is grieved for her people.
"My prayer for them is that they see the real Jesus and worship only Him,” she said. “I also pray for Christians. I pray for a spiritual awakening within the Church; that we realize it is our responsibility to reveal Jesus.”
Please join Kasha and me in praying for Jesus to be revealed to the Poles.
This story was contributed by Susan Reed, missionary to Poland