The “Day of the Dead” in Ecuador

 

“And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.” Revelation 21:4.

……….only for believers!

A picture of sadness? Yes, it is a picture of sadness. I had just, without intention, disappointed someone. It was a very real emotion.

Sorrow as a result of death, a very real emotion? Absolutely! How about death and never being raised to Eternal Life in Jesus Christ? That is “double death”!

Today throughout Ecuador, people come from near and far, and even far away countries to remember their loved ones who have passed away. How do they “celebrate” this day? Come with me as we walk through the crowded streets of the normally quiet, quaint Cotacachi.

When I arrived in Ecuador, I had been separated from my beloved ministry in South Africa, the Rest-a-While Cancer Ministries for about a year. My heart was still very fragile when witnessing sorrowing people, especially at funerals, as this pic depicts.  We lived in an apartment directly opposite a church, and I witnessed many such occasions during the four months that I stayed there. Two things happened: (1) the first question that always comes to mind, when people have died is, “Is he or she in Heaven?” Secondly, I spent many moments crying for these people because few believe and belong to Jesus Christ here, and it is almost certain that they are on their way to a lost eternity. This is a thought too awful for words – unless they come to know Jesus as their Savior. Consider God’s words for a moment, “And many who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2). God knows every person’s “grave” and everyone by name, and out of that same grave we will be raised when Jesus comes back to fetch His own. God cares about graves.

It is 2 November 2010 and I am on my way to the “Cementerio de Cotacachi”.

Most of the stores have closed while the owners and clients make their way to “visit” their loved ones who have passed away. Have you experienced this in your country? We may ask ourselves if we visit the graves of those who have gone on ahead of us. It’s quite a morbid subject, you are probably saying to yourself, but I am trying to portray what happens in Ecuador.

Refreshment is an important thing, whether you are sorrowing or not, so we start off with food. – What a lucrative business! A great opportunity to make that extra bit of cash that the Cotacachi people do not enjoy, as in other parts of the world.

Wow….. a ready-made food stall! People riding on the buses need food, or having just alighted and on their way to the cementerio, need sustenance. You can see the bus has just left the cafeteria  bus stop (parada). No problem, this is what we do in Ecuador.

And after you have visited the graveside, stop at this convenient food stall for some “fritada”at the side of the road.

Makeshift florist stalls line the street along the road to the cementerio. I am sure that at the end of the day, there is not one flower left in Cotacachi. Note the traffic in the narrow street.

There were people and cars everywhere. One street – One way? Two way? Who knows! Now who reverses first? And where do we go from there? No road rage. That’s odd, and that reminds me, I have never yet, in almost two years, come across a rude and impatient driver. Perhaps because there are so few cars.

A large crowd of people has just passed in front of me, and I took this shot to show you part of the outlay of the cementerio with the Imbabura Volcano towering above in the background.

Remaining loved ones go to great lengths and expense to express their love for their family members. Graves are cleaned, fences repainted, all with such devotion, and family members gather quietly just lost in memories of their beloved departed one.

This graveyard is unique. So much love and attention is given to each grave. Walls of Remembrance are immaculately kept, with exquisite artwork, depicting the love that this closely-knit community enjoy. The word “Remembrance” rings a bell in my mind. In the last book of the Old Testament, the book of Malachi 3:16, God says, “Then those that feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name”. God has a Book of Remembrance. Is your name there? Is mine? If we read a little further on from verses 17-18, God points out two categories of people, and only two. Listen to His Word. “They shall be Mine”, says the Lord of Hosts. “On that day I make them My jewels, and I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him". Then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him”. I do not consider myself a jewel, do you? God must have an incredible love to call us sinners jewels. You see He has a Jewel and His name is Jesus, and God gave His Jewel to die for our sins, and God’s Jewel loved you and I so much that He hung on the cross, in our place, so that we could go scot free. Wow, did you think that this beautiful Wall of Remembrance could remind us of God’s wonderful love for us? May I ask you once again, are you a jewel – Jesus’ jewel?

 

The cementerio has two interlinked sections. I have just walked through the section for the Mastizos people and am overlooking the adjacent section for the indigenous people, the Quichua people. They decorate their graves with ornaments, flowers and fruit and spend much time at the graveside on this “Day of the Dead”.

 

On my way home, I looked at the prominent cathedral in the center of the town and thought that no building, regardless how impressive, or no high towering figure has the power to save us from the eternal punishment that we deserve. There is only one Door into Heaven. Listen to the Scriptures. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, No one comes to the Father except through Me”. (John 14:6)

 

 

 

 

Water! What an important commodity in our lives! Water! The most important commodity for our spiritual lives. Again hear the Scriptures. It’s Jesus speaking, the only reliable One whose words upon which we can rely. “…whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:14)

Ponder for a moment at this elderly lady. Where do you think she will go when she passes from this earth? We do not know, only God does. If someone were to ponder over your picture, what would they think? Only God knows what is in our hearts. Only God knows if we truly love and serve Him; only God knows if we have the “water of life” within us; only God knows if we are in His “Book of Remembrance”. Why not go to Jesus and settle your score with Him? I have done so. I do not merit His forgiveness, and if He has done it for me, He will certainly do it for you.

Beloved, on your “Day of the Dead” where will you be? There are only two destinations for all human beings – Eternal Life or eternal punishment. “Therefore, choose life”.