A religious holiday and a folk tradition

“UNDAS” is both a religious observance and a folk tradition among Filipinos that honors members of the family who have passed away. The Church celebrates November 1 as All Saints Day and November 2 as All Souls Day, but Filipinos combine the two in one big observance as they troop to the nation’s cemeteries to visit the graves of their departed loved ones.

For several days now, family members have been visiting cemeteries, cleaning up the surroundings and giving family tombs fresh coats of paint. Because huge masses of people come on November 1 and 2, many choose to come earlier, such as today, and many more will be coming long after this week.

Metro Manilans who originally came from the provinces will motor to their old hometowns in a mass migration that leaves the city streets empty, a most welcome change from the usual traffic jams. This is similar – although ours is on a much smaller scale – to the millions of Chinese travelling to their hometowns in the provinces for the Chinese New Year.

All Saints Day is celebrated on November 1 in honor of all the saints by the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church, the Methodist, Lutheran, and other Protestant churches. All Souls Day honors the souls of all Christians.

While liturgical rites are held in churches, the holidays are largely celebrated in cemeteries with the lighting of candles and laying of flowers at the graves of loved ones in many countries, including France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal in Europe; Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile in South America; and in the state of Louisiana in the United States.

After three and a half centuries of Spanish colonial rule, “Undas” is today among the most widely celebrated holidays in our country. In some provinces, groups of people go around and stop by houses at night and ask for alms and prayers in a practice called “pangangaluluwa.” But the common tradition in the Philippines is for families to simply walk to cemeteries all over the land, light candles at the graves of departed loved ones, and pray for their souls.

At a time when our country is torn apart by reports of so many killings, irregularities in government, terrorism and rebellion, “Undas” is a reminder of what Filipinos are -- a religious nation faithful to the teachings of the Church and true to age-old traditions of respect for elders and love for the family, including those who have passed on.