ALL SAINTS DAY

Image http://cementerioinglesmalaga.org/

On November 1^st, All Saints Day (a public holiday) and 2^nd, All Souls Day in Spain, we celebrate the Christian tradition of honouring and remembering those ones who have died. Many Spaniards go to the cemeteries, they clean and lay fresh flowers on the family´s graves. In the cities these traditions have almost disappeared, but in the little villages, they are still alive.

The tradition goes back to early Christianity, when the fathers of the church tried to introduce these popular festivities into the liturgy. The feast of All Saints Day has its roots in autumnal pagan festivals that announce the imminent approach of winter. During the autumn, the field after the joy of the grape harvest is waiting for the sowing. The earth, feminine symbol, appears arid at this time of year, but after receiving the seed, masculine symbol, this earth becomes hope. These celebrations represent a reunion between the world of the dead (arid land) and the world of the living (life).

Formerly, after dinner, "the chestnut" was celebrated, a family meal dedicated to the dead and that was a reminder of funeral meals. Normal dinner was cooked and, then, they ate  chestnuts, they were roasted over a fire, and they drank wine that had to be sweet or white. The chestnuts were placed on the table and you could serve yourself.

ACTIVITIES

1. What happens in the autumn?

2. What does the text tell about?

3. What do we celebrate in these festivities?

4. What is the masculine symbol and the feminine symbol?

5. What do these parts represent?

6. Formerly, what was eaten after dinner?

7. Explain what you know about chestnut.

8.  What was "the chestnut"?

9. Have you ever heard about this?

10. Complete with synonyms:

árida: __________________ próxima:____________________
inminente: _______________ época:_____________________