The Origins of Halloween and Guy Fawkes Day

Typical Halloween Pumpkin

Early practitioners of pagan religions (usually the Celts) often get credited as being the root source of our modern day Halloween.  But this is only partially true, as a great deal of the credit actually belongs to Christianity. 

During the first century when Christianity began to spread across Europe, the Christian Church co-opted various Pagan holidays and practices because they were very popular with the population.  The decision to combine several pagan festival dates while giving them a Christian slant better enabled the transition from Paganism to Christianity.

The first holiday that would help make the Church make the transition was the widely practiced pagan holiday -  Lemuria which was held on May 13th.  It was believed that annually on this day, the dead would rise up from the grave and return as ghosts to haunt the living - unless they were placated which was done by pouring milk on their graves or offering them little cakes.  In 609 AD, the Church co-opted Lemuria and changed the name of the holiday to All Saints Day.   A day meant to honor the holiest of church saints.

The holiday was very successful, and the Roman church moved the date to November 1 and the adopted name of All Saints Day changed to All Hallows Day. The reason it was moved was for the purpose of "draining the life" of the Pagan holiday Samhain which fell on October 31. 

The result of this move was that people began referring to Samhain as All Hallows Evening.  The name then shortened to All Hallows Even and eventually shortened to Halloween.  Taking a further step, the Church created a new holiday called All Souls Day on November 2nd which was the purpose of honoring all departed Christians. 

The Church also gets credit for establishing the first Trick or Treating practice although it is not the same as the modern day Trick or Treating done by children today - but does share some resemblances.  The Catholic Church told its practitioners that many of their loved ones were not in Heaven or in Hell but stuck  in the middle in a place referred to as Purgatory.  The only way they would be granted entrance into Heaven, the Church told them, was to say enough Christian prayers for their souls so that they would rise up into Heaven.

Relatives of the dead began to seek anyone who would help say prayers to help their departed family members escape to Heaven.  The result of this was that Medieval beggars and poor people would go door to door, and for a small fee of a soul cake -  usually made up of flour, spices and raisins -  they would offer up prayers for the dead.  The significance of this tradition started by the Church is the basis for the references to death, dying, graveyards and other death-related elements found in our modern day Halloween.

Over time, the beggars became more rowdy and demanding for food and drink, and even took to wearing masks as to disguise their identities.  This further gave rise to unruly behavior and even destructive acts during Halloween night.  Over time, most of these traditions were found only in rural, country areas of Europe, and England.  But it was about to get a big boost in London.


Pro-Catholic terrorist Guy Fawkes and his conspirators

 On November 5, 1605, Guy Fawkes, a pro-Catholic terrorist, attempted to blow up the House of Lords in what was known as the Gunpowder Plot.  Guido Fawkes was caught, tried, hung, and his body drawn and quartered, and his body parts were thrown into a large bonfire in front of cheering crowds.  Each year after that and even today, the tradition of bonfires and burning Guy Fawkes in effigy is repeated. This holiday is very close to Halloween, and many of the traditions of wearing masks, begging for treats, and celebrations carried over from Halloween.

As immigrants came to America, many of them brought with them the traditions of Halloween.  Since a large majority of the immigrants came from England, and were still British subjects, Guy Fawkes Day combined with Halloween practices took hold in the Colonies, and became adopted by all Colonists.

And as immigration extended beyond Protestant Englishmen, the Guy Fawkes holiday dissipated but Halloween grew.  As expected,  traditions morphed over time to our modern day American Halloween - Jack 'O Lanterns, Headless Horsemen, Ghosts and Goblins, and masks and candy.  

Interestingly enough, over the last century, American traditions expanded outward and returned back to the place from which it came.  Although Guy Fawkes Day still remains a much larger holiday in England then Halloween, Halloween is still widely celebrated by children and adults alike.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

I Like Cats

Presley

They say you're either born a cat person, or a dog person.  While I do love dogs, I definitely fall in with the company who loves those of the feline persuasion, or should I say puuurrrrsuation?  I own two Himalayan Sealpoints who you will likely become familiar with if you continue to read my ramblings on this blog. 

First we have Mr. Presley, who we affectionately call "Pres".  He's about 10 years old, and the most lovable furball on Earth.  He's the alpha-cat who is the big instigator of trouble and chaos, but at the end of the day, he's just a big snuggler.  He "talks" and takes non-stop handling from the kids - which he loves.  He will do anything for attention even if it means being carried around in a bear hug by the 3-year old.  Not a night goes by when Pres doesn't take up real estate on the bed, sometimes trying to claim your space for his own.

Gigi is our second Himalayan, about 11 years old (we think) who's behaviors fit the description of what people think of when they think of cats.  She is 80% independent but is the first to beg for food when you're making dinner.  She doesn't like to be held, and she'll run from you if you try to pick her up - that is, if you're an adult, but for some reason doesn't even run when the kids go to catch her.  She'll sit next to you on the couch - on her own terms. 

Gigi, is an animal rescue cat, which we were blessed to come into possession of.  It's sort of a sad story but her previous owner, an elderly woman, was forced to move out of state, into the home of her daughter who (we were told) sort of forced her to give Gigi up and forced her to give her to a shelter.  The woman was heartbroken about giving up Gigi.  And we actually did talk with her a number of times, as the shelter gave us her contact information so we could get some additional information about her medical records.

We kept in touch with the woman for several years.  She would call every few months to check on her, and sometimes would leave a message on our answering machine for Gigi.  And we took some pictures of Gigi and put together a picture book so that she could have a memory keepsake.  I thought for awhile that one day I would find her at our door asking to take Gigi back. As time went by, we didn't hear from the old woman.   

At this point I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Presley had a friend before Gigi.  Our first Himalayan Sealpoint was named Precious.  She is unfortunately no longer with us.  That story can be found here.  I don't want to go into too much of the detail about Precious because it brings me a lot of personal sadness, but I will just say we miss her dearly.  While it would be cruel to say that Gigi is Precious' replacement (Precious could never be "replaced") we did want to find a companion for Presley to play with and keep him company when we weren't here.

Gigi

Gigi's transition took nearly a year.  When we first brought her home, she was extremely distraught and would spend most of her time hiding out of sight.  Now she's a regular member of the family who has her own way about her.  At times she chases Presley, and sometimes its the other way around.  Presley can be a bit rough with her, and tends to instigate issues.  He often tries to push her out of whatever space she is in.  Sometimes she wins the battle, but more often than not the poor girl retreats.  Presley never lets Gigi on the bed, even if we try to bring her up with us.  Although occasionally, she has been known to walk over me in the middle of the night.

So that's pretty much my goal for this entry of Random Selection.  Now you know about my favorite furballs.  And when I reference them going forward - you'll know who I'm talking about.

I just want to close this out by asking a few things of people.  Or at least get them to consider a few things if they ever find themselves thinking about purchasing a pet.

Pets, whether dogs or cats, are a lot like people.  They are family members that really matter, and they do have feelings, and a level of cognitive thinking.  They understand, or perhaps recognize is a better word, what is being interpreted as love, loneliness, acceptance, good treatment, abuse, and even abandonment. 

If you are going to get a pet, make sure you are in it for the long haul. And you're going to take it seriously.  Many pets are brought to shelters because of some ridiculous reasons that deal more with convenience rather than legitimate issues.  Animals need care and attention.  If you don't think you can give them the attention they need - both emotional and physical, then don't get one.  If you know someone who is thinking about adopting a pet, you can help by mentioning how much care and support these animals need.

And second,  if you are seriously interested in getting a pet, I recommend looking at some of the shelters in your community or online that are working to find homes for abandoned pets.  There is always someone willing to pay top dollar to a breeder, but some of the best pet success stories come from people who've adopted from shelters. 

That's all for now.  See you next time.

Who was Mary Jones?

The headstone of Mary Jones dated 1729 

I have a thing for old graveyards.

Being a history buff I find it fascinating to walk among the headstones and read the names, dates, and inscriptions that sometimes tell the sad tale of an untimely passing, or warn us that we will face a similar fate one day. 

You can get a feel of how close the people of the 18th century were to death.  Many of the headstones are that of children; sometimes it appears as though nearly an entire family generation was taken through disease, or sickness.  It's sad commentary on the conditions of the day where life was indeed short, and death was an accepted part of everyday life. While there are headstones that contain evidence that people did live into their 70s, it appears to be the exception rather than the rule.  Many only lived to the ripe old age of 40.

For some time I wanted to visit the Old Burying Ground in Colchester center (Connecticut).  I must have passed by it dozens of times on my way to the beach, but never stopped to go inside and wander.  It's an amazing place to read the stones, as many from the 1700s are still readable, containing poems and biblical verses, and stories of accomplishments and accolades.

After spending a good half hour reading and reflecting, I happened upon a section of the graveyard that struck me as somewhat bizarre.  A rather large tree stands in the distant corner of the graveyard, and around it, twenty, perhaps more, broken or fractured headstones.  I rounded the tree, and saw some complete headstones leaning awkwardly against the base of the tree. 

Gravestones laying against the tree

One of these stones jumped out at me - it simply read, "1729 Mary Jones".  The stone wasn't broken, and from my earlier survey of the cemetery, I recognized it to be similar in size and shape to a few of the same era.  I guess seeing the stone left against the tree; lifted from where it belonged - above the grave of poor departed Ms. Jones - sort of bothered me.  In a sympathetic way, I imagined what I might think if 200 years from now someone took my gravestone and laid it against a tree. 

In fairness to the caretakers of this graveyard, there may be a very good reason for why these stones have been removed from their proper places.  I wondered if they were uprooted by weather and frost, or vandalized by local kids.  But why haven't they been put back?  Don't they have a graveyard plot plan?  Some historical record of where people are buried? Who's responsible for leaving poor Ms. Jones' gravestone misplaced? I can't say I felt anger, but perhaps concern or slight outrage.


Top half of Corden Bulkley's grave


I then circled to find another headstone against the tree.  That of Corden Bulkley - probably of the same era.  And there were many more stacked around the tree. This was certainly becoming an interesting mystery.  Stumped, I left for home.

During the week, my mind drifted several times back to the Old Graveyard.  And Who was Mary Jones?

A few days later, I stopped by the Federated Church which adjoins the Old Buring Ground.  But after speaking to a few people inside they informed me that the Graveyard was at one time owned and maintained by the previous Church - likely a Congregational Church some time ago, but is not maintained or affiliated with the current Church.

The people at the Church were very nice.  But alas while they didn't know much about the state or care-taking of the Graveyard, they related a story about the recent unearthing of a crypt under a hill of grass believed to be hidden for perhaps a century, or more.  That may be a story for another day.

The Church folks directed me to the Colchester Historical Society which I attempted to contact by phone.  But they did not answer, in fact no one seems to ever answer, or ever be there.  I will try again next week.  Perhaps the ghost of Mary Jones and Corden Bulkley are directing me to get these answers, or to get me to pursue having their headstones put back where they belong.  Or maybe its my overactive imagination trying to just solve a good mystery around All Hallows Eve.  Who knows.

Watch this space. I'll update you on what I find out.

Random Selection: The Beginning

Larry Wayne

I can't tell you how often people say to me "You have so many stories, you should write a book."  Well, since I don't have access to a publishing company, or an editing team, I guess I'll have to settle on writing a blog.  The positive is that there are no deadlines, and no stress about trying to get every grammatical point correct which will make the journey all the more enjoyable.

For quite some time, I've wanted to write about my random experiences, and on random topics - thus the name Random Selection.  My plan is to come across someone, something, or some place that's interesting to me and share my thoughts about whatever it may be. 

I hope to incorporate photos into the stories where possible to provide a visual basis for you, the reader, to have a point of reference.  Plus, pictures make a a blog more appealing as a whole. I actually toyed with the idea of creating a photo-blog, but I'm too long winded to allow a picture to tell a story on its own.  But we'll see, they say a picture is worth a thousand words.  For my purposes, I hope that most of these essays are shorter than 500 words apiece.  I figure if I don't have to write mini-books, I might be apt see blogging as less of a burden and keep the posting consistent.

Regarding labels, my goal is to include a generalized topic, and likely the town - if the photo or story warrants it. 

This blog is semi-dedicated to Larry Wayne who I used to listen to on Radio Deutsche Welle (The Voice of Germany) via Shortwave Radio in the 1980s.  Larry Wayne (his real name is Larry Wolfberg) had a weekly segment called Random Selection - Living in Germany which aired on Sundays.  Larry would often relate stories on a variety of current events, newspaper stories, and his own observations on happenings around him.  It's really an art to be able to tell a story in a way that captures a reader or listener.  Larry Wayne captured my undivided attention for the 7-10 minutes that he spoke, often made me laugh, and wanting more.  To top my experience, he actually read a few of my letters on the air that I sent him while attending college.

Larry is long retired from Deutsche Welle.  But I understand that he is still in radio, and works for a Swedish station playing Jazz music (see http://www.larryjazz.com/). He's also the author of the book Radio Man, which I hate to admit, - I haven't yet read.  But Larry - thanks for the years of stories and laughs. And while I'm at it -  thanks to both Glenn Hauser of DX Listening Digest, and Rob Sobkoviak for helping me to track down Larry's whereabouts after all of these years.

Well, that's it for now.  Hopefully, I'll keep you entertained. Now where to begin....?