Have you ever heard of the Hallowtide Triduum?
It is our three-day observance that runs
from October 31 through November 2 every year.
It honours the Communion of Saints which we profess in our Creed:
the souls in purgatory and the joys of eternal life.
October 31 – All Hallows’ Eve (Halloween) is the vigil night that leads us into All Saint’s Day. It allows us to reflect on our own mortality and reminds us to recall that Christ conquered sin and death.
November 1 – All Saint’s Day is a Solemnity: a feast day where we attend Mass to honour all the saints in the Heaven, including both those saints who have been officially recognized by the church and those who have died before us assured of their eternal home in heaven.
November 2 – All Souls Day is a day dedicated for us to set time aside to pray for the faithful departed, so they may enter into the fullness of the promise of Our Father’s Kingdom.
What can we do: Attend Mass, offer prayers for our loved ones who have gone before us, and visit the dead at gravesites. We are promised a Plenary Indulgence (remission of temporal punishment) for the souls in Purgatory when we visit a cemetery and pray for the departed, particularly between November 1 and November 8. We can look to reclaim our customs by engaging in faith-filled traditions like dressing up appropriately, baking “soul cakes” that were sold door to door in Medieval Ireland and Great Britain, in exchange for prayers for the dead, reading saint biographies and praying the Office of the Dead.