STRANGE GODS

STRANGE GODS

Don’t Say “Thank You” to anyone,authoritatively advised an old woman. It was during the wake of my sister who died early in the morning.

I knew it was not correct because I learned early in school that it was bad manner not to say thank you when people are offering help or anything like condolences, prayers and monetary assistance. Then I was supposed to light only one candle since only one was dead. No one must do any cleaning or it will rain. We were advised not to cook any crawling vegetable or scratching chicken.

Those, and so many other superstitious practices when someone dies. I cannot just follow blindly. There must be some moral or biblical or scientific reason for all the actions that they were suggesting. I stood by my principles. I did not follow most of the unscientific and corny suggestions. I carefully explained that believing in superstition was a SIN against the first commandment because when we do unorthodox things we are simply believing and following strange gods. The first commandment clearly stated: “Love God above all things. Thou shall not have strange gods before Me”.

I was supposed to throw a garment of the deceased over the roof of the house, put an upside down broom under the downspout, sprinkle salt all over the Church Plaza, all to prevent rain from pouring during the funeral march. But I needed the right explanation and since no one could volunteer, I simply did not follow them. I was also expected to put a little piece of all the food on a big plate for offering before the altar. They say it has been done even during the time of Noah. But I countered that all those offerings were stopped when Jesus Christ came and offered Himself for everybody’s redemption.

Many people still find it easier to follow unreasonably for fear of stimulating the anger of the strange god. I would not very much mind that they were doing even if they didn’t understand at all what they were doing but observing that many of the younger generation, the presumably enlightened ones were also practicing such superstitious beliefs, bothered me so much. Imagine not saying Thank You for the good things done – and without any plausible explanation.

After the Funeral Mass I stood up to express my thanks, in behalf of our family to all who in one way or another offered help and prayer during our time of bereavement. But I went I bit further. I explained that saying thank you for the good things done was never bad as it was thought in school for our children to apply in life. “But if we, parents, aunts and uncles, teachers and baptismal sponsors are the ones showing the irrational practice to our children, what good can we expect from our future generation?” Let us always Love God Above all Things and let us not have strange gods before Him.

My sister was successfully buried. It did not rain and no other member of the family followed (to die) in a period of forty days.