Graveyard

GRAVEYARD HALLOWEEN SERVICE, A.D. 2014 A

A History of the Hallowtide

7:00 p.m. @ St. Peter’s Cemetery

Items: cassock, thurible, torches, vigil candles, personal stereo with MP3 capability, costumes for visual aid. Procession gathers at the cemetery gate and proceeds along six stations in a cruciform path, with readings and reflections at each point of the Cross.

Participants: Pastor, lector (italics), thurifer.

Opening Song: Sting, “Soul Cake”

Graveyard Gate: Introduction

Welcome, welcome one and all, to our annual graveyard Halloween service! Tonight we shall process by torch light through St. Peter’s Cemetery in a cruciform path, stopping at points along the cross for reading and reflection. Please watch your step. As in previous years, we’d like to have roughly as many people come back out of the graveyard as entered in the first place.

Ancient calendars, both Roman and Christian, run rife with holidays for every time and taste, encouraging the faithful to lead a life of constant remembrance, reverence, and celebration.  Alas, as Western Civilization has turned from ecstasy to efficiency, the vast majority of our holidays have withered and passed from memory; even Holy Mother Church struggles to keep the people enthused for anything beyond Christmas and Easter!

Yet there stands on the calendar one glorious exception to this otherwise dreary trend: Halloween!  Far from withering, Halloween seems to be the one holiday upon which everyone in American society can agree, and its popularity seems to grow continually.  Today American Halloween traditions are being enthusiastically imported to Europe, Latin America, and even Japan!  Few, however, know the history of Halloween, or even that it is but the beginning of the three-day medieval festival known as Hallowtide.

Make no mistake: though often misconstrued and maligned, Halloween has ever been a child of the Church.  Let us explore the history of this most misunderstood of Christian holy days, ever recalling that the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not overcome it!

Opening Prayer

We gather on this sacred ground, amongst the mortal remains of our forebears, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. AMEN. Let us pray.

Lord, You are the Light Whom darkness cannot overcome.  Guide us through this vale of shadow, and raise us from loamy earth to everlasting life.  We convene tonight in order to remember and to intercede for all those here laid to rest: that whatever the state of their souls, we might at long last be returned one and all to Your eternal banquet.

We pray relief and comfort for those whom we may aid; and we pray that those who have achieved the beatific vision of Your glory might petition our cause before You—for You, O Christ, are eternal Judge of both the living and the dead.  Until that day when all are one in You, may the saints preserve us, the holy angels guard us, the Blessed Virgin pray for our souls, and Almighty God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—bless us now and forever.

In Jesus’ Name. AMEN.

While Walking—James 2:19 

Tu credis quoniam unus est Deus; bene facis.

Et daemones credunt et contremescunt.

Station I: Pagan Precursors

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

I arise today

Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,

Through the belief in the threeness, Through confession of the oneness

Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today

Through the strength of Christ's birth with his baptism,

Through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial,

Through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension,

Through the strength of his descent for the judgment of Doom.

In 1973, novelist Norman Mailer coined the term “factoid” to indicate a widely-accepted but spurious fact, taken as truth simply because it has been repeated so often. One would be hard-pressed to find a more eminent example of a factoid than the supposed origins of Halloween.

We are told by history books, news programs, and popular lore alike that Halloween dates back to the Celtic harvest festival of Samhain, when the veil between the living and the dead was stretched to its most diaphanous. Ghosts, along with goblins and devils, could return to haunt the living that night, and so pagans would dress in costume to frighten the spooks away, and pile high the bonfires in order to call back the sun. Sweet treats, we are told, were left to mollify the hungry dead, and so our Halloween traditions date back thousands of years to appease lost souls who may yet wander the earth.

It’s a wonderful story, ancient and spooky and quite compelling. It makes for some wonderful movies. Unfortunately it’s also completely false. Nearly all our modern Halloween traditions originated in just the last few centuries, and Samhain, far from being a devilish day of the dead as twitchy fundamentalists would claim, was nothing more than the beginning of Celtic winter. We have no records of its celebration before the Tenth Century, long after Ireland had been Christianized, and there is no mention at all of spirits returning from the dead.

The Gaelic origins of Halloween are nothing more than factoids—falsehoods repeated so often that they have been accepted in the mainstream as true. Let us remember this the next time we see a Halloween special on the History Channel.

Let us pray:

For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confess,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest,
Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

While Walking—Revelation 20:9b-10 

Et diabolus qui seducebat eos missus est

in stagnum ignis et sulphuris ubi et bestia

et pseudoprophetes et cruciabuntur

die ac nocte in saecula saeculorum.

Station II: The Holy Dead

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

I arise today

Through the strength of the love of Cherubim, In obedience of angels,

In the service of archangels, In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,

In prayers of patriarchs, In predictions of prophets,

In preaching of apostles, In faith of confessors,

In innocence of holy virgins, In deeds of righteous men.

If indeed there are any pagan origins to Halloween, we must look not to the great Gaels of Ireland but to the denizens of ancient Rome, who would perform annual exorcisms during the month of May. The purpose of these rituals was to drive out malevolent ghosts by banging pots and pans throughout the household at night, propitiating hungry spirits with beans, and performing religious rites to defend the living from the dead.

As Rome Christianized, however, a new attitude towards the dead became prevalent. Due to their strong belief in the Resurrection of all flesh, Christians honored their dearly departed both as sleeping on earth, where their corpses were venerated as primary relics, and also as living on spiritually in the beatific vision of Heaven, as God’s saints. Death was not to be feared for it had not the final say. Those who died in faith would not return as hungry ghosts to haunt the living, but would pray in the direct presence of God for those of us still struggling through our pilgrimage on earth. God might even give His saints special dispensation to intervene in the lives of their devotees.

As a result of this far more optimistic outlook on the afterlife—as compared, say, to Homer’s gibbering ghosts—saints were honored from the earliest days of the Church, both in uplifted prayers for intercession and in the distribution and reverencing of relics. The Holy Family, the Apostles, and the early martyrs and wonderworkers of the Christian faith were celebrated on individual saints’ days, yet these canonized “capital-S” Saints represented, one hoped, but a small sampling of the denizens of Heaven. Thus, all saints not given their own specific festival were celebrated collectively.

This “all saints” day may have been observed on May 13th, the climax of the Lemuralia, as early as the Fourth Century A.D., but that date did not become set in stone until Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Roman Pantheon (that old pagan temple to “all gods”) to the Blessed Virgin Mary and All Martyrs on May 13th, A.D. 609. Most interpreters understand this as a Christian refutation or reclaiming of the Lemuralia for Christ.

Let us pray:

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress, and their Might;
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true Light.

Oh, may Thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old
And win with them the victor's crown of gold.
Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

While Walking—Isaiah 14:9-11

infernus subter conturbatus est in occursum

adventus tui suscitavit tibi gigantas omnes principes terrae

surrexerunt de soliis suis omnes principes nationum

universi respondebunt et dicent tibi et tu vulneratus

es sicut nos nostri similis effectus es

detracta est ad inferos superbia tua concidit cadaver tuum

subter te sternetur tinea et operimentum tuum erunt vermes

Station III: The Hallowtide

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

I arise today

Through the strength of heaven:

Light of sun, Radiance of moon,

Splendor of fire, Speed of lightning,

Swiftness of wind, Depth of sea,

Stability of earth, Firmness of rock.

I arise today

Through God's strength to pilot me:

God's might to uphold me, God's wisdom to guide me,

God's eye to look before me, God's ear to hear me,

God's word to speak for me, God's hand to guard me,

God's way to lie before me, God's shield to protect me,

God's host to save me

From snares of devils, From temptations of vices,

From everyone who shall wish me ill,

Afar and anear, Alone and in multitude.

What Wh

In the Eighth Century A.D., Pope Gregory III dedicated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to the relics “of the holy apostles and of all saints, martyrs and confessors, of all the just made perfect who are at rest throughout the world.” From this point onward, the Western Church would recognize Hallowmas, the Mass of All Saints, on November 1st, the date of the chapel’s dedication. Particularly solemn holy days on the Church calendar are preceded by a vigil on the evening before. Thus, as November 1st became All Hallows, October 31st became All Hallows’ Eve—Halloween.

All well and good for the saints in Heaven, but what of those poor departed souls still being purified for entry into the beatific vision? Prayer for the dead is a well-attested tradition in both Judaism and Christianity, and in the Western Church such prayers are believed to aid a soul in purgation by hurrying them to perfect unity with God. Extended periods of prayer for the dead were recognized during different periods in different regions, but it was St. Odilo of Cluny who fixed November 2nd as the Commemoration of All Faithful Departed—better known as All Souls’ Day.

This three day festival—Halloween, All Saints’, and All Souls’—became collectively the Hallowtide.  No longer a time of fear, the Church took our natural autumnal fascination with death and focused it to orthodox ends: a time to celebrate the Church Triumphant (in Heaven) and Church Expectant (in Purgatory).

Prayers for the dead in Purgatory dominated much of All Souls’ Day, and so on the preceding evening beggars and children would often go door-to-door, asking for “soul cakes” of oatmeal and molasses.  In exchange for such sweet treats, the needy would say prayers for the donor’s dead, until the cakes themselves came to represent souls fleeing from purgation into the beatific vision of union with God in Heaven.  The tradition of young people “gone a-souling” may well be a precursor to our modern trick-or-treat.

Let us pray:

O blest communion, fellowship divine,
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

While Walking—Isaiah 14:12-15

quomodo cecidisti de caelo lucifer qui mane oriebaris

corruisti in terram qui vulnerabas gentes

qui dicebas in corde tuo in caelum conscendam

super astra Dei exaltabo solium meum sedebo

in monte testamenti in lateribus aquilonis

ascendam super altitudinem nubium ero similis Altissimo

verumtamen ad infernum detraheris in profundum laci

Station IV: A Penny for the Guy

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

I summon today all these powers between me and those evils,

Against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and soul,

Against incantations of false prophets, Against black laws of pagandom

Against false laws of heretics, Against craft of idolatry,

Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,

Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul.

When the Reformation and Counter-Reformation rolled through the Church, they left no stone unturned, including Halloween. Luther posted his 95 Theses on All Hallows’ Eve precisely because he knew that the Castle Church in Wittenberg would be packed with worshippers on All Saints’ Day. Thus, for many Protestants, Halloween is also Reformation Day.

The Puritans of Cromwell’s England officially forbade the Hallowtide (and for that matter, Christmas), but were able to bring it in the back door when Guy Fawkes, an English Catholic, attempted to blow up Parliament on November 5th, 1605.  Fawkes was hung, drawn and quartered, and the anniversary of his foiled plot became immortalized as Guy Fawkes’ Day. Every British child knows the rhyme:

Remember, remember, the fifth of November,

The gunpowder treason and plot

I see no reason why the gunpowder treason

Should ever be forgot!

If Hallowtide was too Catholic for Cromwell’s ilk, Guy Fawkes’ Day was acceptable precisely because of its anti-Catholicism.  Much of our modern Halloween pageantry, including bonfires and ridiculous costumes, stems from Guy Fawkes’ Day.

Let us pray:

And when the fight is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

But, lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of Glory passes on His way.
Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

While Walking—Isaiah 34:14

et occurrent daemonia onocentauris

et pilosus clamabit alter ad alterum ibi cubavit

lamia et invenit sibi requiem

Station V: Uniquely American

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

Christ to shield me today

Against poison, against burning,

Against drowning, against wounding,

So that there may come to me abundance of reward.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

Across the Atlantic, the Puritans of New England and Dutch of New York had no All Saints’ Day traditions of their own. What brought Halloween into its own as a truly American celebration was wave after wave of Irish Catholic immigration to the New World during the devastating Potato Famine of the 19th Century.

Two million Irish came ashore on the East Coast, and they brought with them their Hallowtide tales of life and death.  Carved turnips became carved pumpkins, and the modern jack-‘o-lantern was born!  Bewildered New England Protestants initially looked to Irish Halloween customs as pagan or Catholic, which to Puritan eyes seemed largely the same thing. This is likely the origin of those tall tales about Samhain.

As the 20th Century progressed, Halloween festivities migrated from the Victorian house to the unsupervised street, and from there to town hall as municipalities attempted to tame any malicious mischief.

While costumes had come to be associated with Hallowtide around 1900 or so, truly elaborate disguises and trick-or-treating were not yet traditions particular to Halloween.  In fact, costuming was much more closely associated with Thanksgiving—a tradition continued by the Mummers’ Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Child beggars known as “ragamuffins,” mimicking Guy Fawkes rituals, went trick-or-treating door to door, extorting candies under threat of prankster vandalism.  It was, in effect, a form of class warfare.

Alas, come the Great Depression of 1932, Thanksgiving extravagance was officially done away with—but the ragamuffins, unwilling to be denied, switched to the far less regulated holiday of Halloween!  Thus modern trick-or-treating came into its own. After throwing in a bit of Hollywood horror, and our uniquely American holiday was born.

Let us pray:

From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
Alleluia! Alleluia!

The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon, to faithful warriors cometh rest.
Sweet is the calm of Paradise the blest.
Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

While Walking—Romans 8:38-39

Certus sum enim quia neque mors, neque vita, neque angeli, neque principatus,

neque virtutes, neque instantia, neque futura, neque fortitude,

neque altitudo, neque profundum,

neque creatura alia poterit nos separare a charitate Dei,

quæ est in Christo Iesu Domino nostro.

Station VI: Resurrection Reclaimed

A Reading from St. Patrick’s Breastplate

I arise today

Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,

Through belief in the threeness, Through confession of the oneness,

Of the Creator of Creation.  AMEN. 

The Hallowtide has never left the Christian calendar, even if it has drifted from the minds of the faithful.  The Church still takes these days to celebrate our dead, no longer with fear, but with Christian hope, faith and love.  It is a time to recall, with defiance and relief, that all the things which used to terrorize us—ghosts and ghoulies, witches and will-‘o-wisps, death, the Devil and Hell itself—have been conquered in Christ, and we are liberated from their ancient grip.

Hallowtide, for the Church, is a time to dance in the face of death, and thereby know what it is to truly be alive.  Now what could be more Christian than that?

Let us pray:

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord.

Let perpetual Light shine upon them.

May they rest in peace. AMEN.

Go in peace.  Serve the Lord.  Thanks be to God.

Closing Song: Camille Saint-Saens, “Danse Macabre”