All Saints/All Souls Day (1-2 November)
by Robert Strybel, Warsaw Correspondent
So important to the Polish nation were these Catholic observances that the Soviet-installed communist regime did not dare abolish them. It only renamed All Saints Day the “Holiday of the Dead” (Święto Zmarłych), while retaining its legal, public holiday status. Theologically speaking, All Saints Day is the occasion to invoke the intercession of canonized saints, while All Souls Day was set aside to pray for the poor, suffering souls in purgatory.
In practice, both days are the time to visit one’s family graves. The graves are tidied up, fresh flowers and lighted votive lamps are placed thereon. In churches and cemetery chapels the names of the deceased whose loved ones have made offerings to request prayers are read out. These traditions were observed by the earlier waves of Polish immigrants, but in time they were largely eclipsed by American Memorial Day (formerly Decoration Day).
During the “ethnic renaissance” of the 1960s and ’70s, across Polonia attempts were made to revive these traditions, but they never even approached the universal acceptance observed in Poland. The few PolAms who visit Poland at that time of year are amazed at how after nightfall Polish cemeteries turn into into vast expanses of multi-colored, flickering flames. The eerie shadows they cast on their surroundings overpowering scent of molten wax and damp fallen leaves make for an unforgettable experience.
