Every November 2, the country commemorates the All Souls Day either “Day of the Dead”, whose objective is to pray for those people who have finished their earthly life and, especially, for those who are still in a state of purification in Purgatory.
Although the Church has always prayed for the deadit was from the second of November of the year 998 when a special day was created for them. This was instituted by the Benedictine monk Saint Odilon, France. The idea of it was adopted by Rome in the 16th century and from there it spread to the whole world.
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The tradition of praying for the dead dates back to the early days of Christianity, where their memory was already honored and prayers and sacrifices were offered for them, since when a person dies they are not capable of doing anything to gain heaven; however, the living can offer works for the deceased to reach salvation.
With good deeds and prayer, loved ones can be helped to obtain forgiveness and purification from their sins in order to participate in the glory of God.
These sentences are called suffrages. The best suffrage is to offer the Holy Mass for the deceased.
tradition in the country
It is tradition in Dominican Republic that family and friends visit the necropolis to light candles for their dead, place flowers on the tombs, as well as food for Saint Elias: The Baron of the Cemetery, the first dead in the cemeteries.
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With these actions, the bereaved seek to compensate for their sorrows and reiterate their affection towards that loved one who has already left this world.
Yesterday the brigades of the mayors of the National District, Santo Domingo Norte and Santo Domingo Este removed debris and garbage, weeded graves with picks and machetes and touched up the paint on the graves so that relatives can visit their relatives in a decent and adequate environment.
