By Greg Staskiewicz, Reporter
St. Cecilia’s Cathedral, along with the College of St. Mary and Boys Town, are hosting ofrendas, or offerings, for Dia de Los Muertos this year.
Dia de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a Mexican mestizo holiday that combines elements of Spanish Catholicism and indigenous ritual. The holiday is meant to be a celebration of life and an invitation for the beloved dead to return among their friends and family on November 1 and 2, said Jose Garcia, Curator of the Mexican American Historical Society of the Midlands (MAHSM).
“We have Dia de Muertos, the Catrina, we have the popular culture that is starting to embrace remembrance instead of fear and loathing,” Garcia said. “Because that’s what Dia de Muertos is. We are remembering, honoring, and nurturing our ancestors to come and be among us November first and second, and partake of us remembering their vintage humanity.”
Jose and his wife, Linda Garcia-Perez, artistic director of MAHSM, created three ofrendas this year, one each at St. Cecilia’s, the College of St. Mary, and Boys Town. The public is welcome to come participate and bring photos and mementos of passed loved ones. All people and religions are invited, including people who are not Mexican and don’t know anything about the holiday.
“It was really funny when I asked them to be part of the show. They would say, “But Linda, I’m not Mexican. I don’t have any Spanish blood, I don’t know anything.” And I laughed,” said Garcia-Perez. “Well you think Mexicans are the only ones that die and grieve? No.”
Day of the Dead is steeped in ancient symbolism. Linda and Jose said there are several main elements one can find at most ofrendas: the calaveras, or sugar skulls, that are often smiling and meant to be sweet candy for the living; the monarch butterfly, which is believed to carry the souls of the dead; and earth, fire, wind, and water, represented by food and plants, candles, paper flowers, and water or drink.
The holiday is a chance for those who are grieving and sad to turn their pain into joy.
“Instead you have memories, you have fondness, you have the ability of looking at someone’s life without a funeral or without a tombstone,” Jose said.
The couple said that the non-Mexican public has come to understand and love Dia de Los Muertos so much more in recent years – initially, Jose and Linda would be asked why they were displaying Satanic subject matter in a church or other public area.
Linda emphasized the difference between Day of the Dead and Halloween – one is meant to lovingly remember and commune with the dead, while the other deals with evil spirits, blood, and horror.
