For us at the sacrifice of the Mass, the memorial is the remembrance, the making alive, the true eternal presence of God in His body, blood, soul, and divinity of God in the paschal mystery. They patiently wait and are ready for their spiritual presence. On the Day of the Dead, people wait for this day to remember their deceased family members. (See Catechism of the Catholic Church No.1182.) So, as people gather to make an altar for their beloved ones on the Day of the Dead to encounter their beloved ones, the altar for us is our sacred encounter with God at daily Mass. The altar, for us, is the Lord’s Cross and is also the table of the Lord, to which the People of God are invited. Catholics in a way, celebrate at daily Mass, with these same four elements. These are the altar, the presence, the communion and the afterlife. In taking a Eucharistic approach to this celebration, I believe that the altars placed on the Day of the Dead have four Eucharistic elements. The Day of the Dead is then a celebration of life in the afterworld. They do it with food, music, laughter, and the centrality of this gathering is that their beloved ones are not forgotten. People celebrate in cemeteries, churches and homes every year keeping the memory of their beloved ones alive. In indigenous beliefs, these altars on the Day of the Dead represent the living hope that their deceased loved ones, for at least one day of the year, will return to this earth from the afterworld, and share communion with their family members. However, some people mistakenly think that these altars are created for worshiping the deceased persons, which is not the case. These are personal and made of special belongings of the deceased person, food that the person enjoyed on earth, flowers, songs, candles, favorite saints and of course Our Lady and the Crucifix. The central element of this celebration are the altars or los altares also known as ofrendas or offerings dedicated to persons who are no longer with us. I believe that this fascination about the el Día de los Muertos celebration is the safest opportunity for people to talk freely about death without feeling vulnerable. There is a growing interest around the world about the celebration of el Día de los Muertos exemplified by two recent animation movies about this topic, The Book of Life and Coco.
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