All Souls Day – A time to remember our dearly departed

TODAY, Nov 2 of 2024, millions of Christians around the world are devoting themselves to a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed on ‘All Souls Day’, also known as the ‘Feast of All Souls’.

It is a solemn and significant observance in the liturgical calendar of the Christian faith, and is memorialised through prayers, intercessions, alms and visits to cemeteries, columbaria and churches.

The tradition of offering prayers for the deceased has its roots in old Biblical writings, particularly in 2 Maccabees 12:42-46. The Catholic saint, St Odilo of Cluny, is credited with creating a particular day for intercession for the deceased souls, believed to have been established at the Abbey of Cluny between 998 AD and 1030 AD.

Since its adoption in Rome by the Vatican in the 14th century, it has become a universal holiday in the Western Christian tradition.

In the Anglican Communion, the Church of England views the day as an extension of the observance of All Saints Day, which falls yearly a day before Nov 1.

It is called ‘The Commemoration of the Faithful Departed’, and serves to ‘remember those who have died’ in connection with the theological doctrines of the resurrection of the body and the Communion of Saints.

From my search on Wikipedia, it is said: “Many All Souls’ Day traditions are associated with popular notions about purgatory. Bell-tolling is meant to comfort those being cleansed.

“Lighting candles serves to kindle a light for the poor souls languishing in the darkness.

“All Souls Day is celebrated in many European countries with vigils, candles, the decoration of graves, and special prayers as well as many regional customs.”

In Sarawak, as can be witnessed by the massive traffic jams and the sprouting up of makeshift temporary florist stalls being set up near the proximity of the many Christian cemeteries, the tradition of observing All Souls Day is an annual affair.

Many devotees can be seen paying their respects a day or two earlier just to avoid the bad traffic on the actual day itself.

In Kuching, the main Christian cemeteries locations of Mile 5 and Mile 7 (for the older burials), the newer ones at Jalan Penrissen and further afield for those of the Catholic faith, as well as the old Anglican cemeteries behind St Thomas’ School at McDougall Road and at Batu Kitang, would usually bear witness to hundreds, if not thousands, of the faithful living paying their respects to their dearly departed.

A visitor curious to witness the aftermath the day after would be greeted by a festoon of beautiful flower bouquets of all arrangements and the burnt out remains of white candles in all shapes and forms atop the graves and headstones of burial plots, old and new, throughout any Christian cemetery.

The sight of them gladdens the heart in remembrance of loved ones gone; yet saddens to also catch sight of those forlorn and untended graves – flowerless, candle-less and unvisited.

On my last visit to the centuries-old Anglican cemetery atop of McDougall Hill, I had a walkabout around the beautiful resting place, shaded in most parts by huge ancient banyan trees bordering the old Sarawak Museum grounds.

I had noticed that more than half of the graves stood untouched – no newly-laid flowers, no candles, and some tombstones were in very bad shape, without names, or had their wooden crosses virtually toppled over.

Some even had cracked headstones and those on unlevelled ground had old tree roots sprouting out in between one and another burial plot.

There was not much that the Anglican Diocese could do as many descendants or family members could not be identified and their current status and whereabouts unknown.

It is sad that such is the case as with any old cemetery anywhere in the world. Many may have no family members left; they would have been the last in their line.

Some of the next-of-kin would have migrated overseas. A few would have also passed on and be buried elsewhere.

Quite a number of those whose descendants would be more than willing to look after and tend to their graves, would not know that they have relatives buried there.

In the face of all this, the idea of a columbarium has to be a very attractive alternative for those among the living who are contemplating on their final resting place for their physical bodies after cremation.

At the moment, there is only one which is the Roman Catholic’s Columbarium at St Peter’s where 5,000 units for placement are already about 80 per cent taken up.

The Anglican Diocese’s New Columbarium is currently being constructed, and due for occupancy sometime in the middle of 2026. It will be sited at the former St Thomas’ Teachers Quarters just behind Aurora Plaza at McDougall Road.

We have all of us, at one stage of our life or another, faced the reality of life – that death and the loss of a loved one would always be a part of living. The more love that we have shared, imparted to ourselves or given to another – be it a family member, a dear friend, or a casual acquaintance – the more will our grief be felt within our hearts when the actual loss occurs.

With the passing of time, our grief may naturally lessen but it will never fully disappear, for those closest to us we would think of them every day, or whenever something we see, feel, smell, touch or hear reminds us of him or her.

Sometimes you cannot control your own emotions; sometimes you just need to let it all out – even a passing thought or a mere mention of a loved one’s name could trigger an avalanche of utter and complete sadness, and it would be impossible to hold back your tears.

At times like this, you do not need a day to remember a loved one, because it is always there just waiting to step out from behind the shadows of love.

In conclusion, I would like to dedicate this in loving memory of those we have lost.

May their souls continue to inspire us with love and unforgettable memories.

All Souls Day reminds us that death is not the end, but a transition to a higher realm – the souls we have lost may be gone, but they are never forgotten. They live on in our cherished memories and in the love they have left behind.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.” — John 14:1, The Holy Bible.

* The opinions expressed in this article are the columnist’s own and do not reflect the view of the newspaper.