Wypominki: calling out the names of the dead

​Ceremonies honoring the dead occur among  people all over the world, regardless of place, worldview and religion. In the Catholic faith, it is on All Souls' Day(November 2) that  cemeteries fill up with relatives and friends of the dead, often coming from far away, bringing flowers,  lighting candles, and staying  for a moment to be with those who are no longer  among the living. Many individuals recognize it as the Day of the Dead.  In the Polish language, it's called Zaduszki,  All Souls' Day.  In the doctrine of the Catholic Church, All Souls' Day is an expression of the conviction of the communion of saints, the resurrection of bodies, eternal life and the effectiveness of intercessory prayer.

All Souls' Day is derived from the practices of early medieval monks  when  services were held annually in various monasteries for their deceased brethren. In Poland, the oldest source confirming an All Souls' Day celebration is in the 12th century with the Cistercian monastery in Ląd in Wielkopolska(Greater Poland).   In 1311, by decision of the Holy See, All Souls' Day was introduced to the church calendar and the Roman liturgy and gradually spread throughout the Catholic Church. By then, All Souls' Day was being celebrated by many more religious congregations, including Dominicans, Norbertine and Poor Clares, also among secular clergy in Kraków, Poznań and Gniezno.

One particular aspect of All Souls' Day was that of prayer intentions. The prayer intentions were something that had its beginnings in the Eucharistic liturgy of the very ancient church where the names of deceased bishops, kings, church founders, and later, the names of saints, were written down  and read out loud by the clergy.  The time and frequency of the reading the names changed around over the centuries based on the Vatican councils(before the Mass, during Eucharistic liturgy during the Mass, etc.)  but during these remembrances of the faithful, the names of the deceased were read out loud and the public participating in the Mass was invited to join in praying for the deceased with the words  "Dobry Jezu, a nasz Panie, daj im wieczne spoczywanie.” "Good Jesus and our Lord, grant them eternal rest."  In some abbeys, prayer intentions were started for all deceased Christians, not just deceased religious individuals. The tradition remains to this day.

 In Poland, this calling out of names of the deceased and asking for their eternal rest on All Souls' Day is called wypominki from the word wypominać, that is, to keep reminding. In this case, that the dear departed have not been forgotten. It is an intercessory prayer, an act of praying in behalf of souls who may be in Purgatory, awaiting entrance into heaven. At the same time, it is also an act of remembrance
The oldest existing text written  in the Polish language calling to pray for the dead, comes from a fragment of a sermon from the 15th century:

 "Do not forget the dead, all today remember the souls of your father, mother and your friends. I kindly ask your  prayers  for those souls whose bodies lie in this house, that is in the church, and also in the cemetery. I am asking you for one Hail Mary for their souls, whose bodies were lost in battle,  at sea. I am asking you for one Hail Mary for the empty souls who are in purgatory, who have no help but look at us and call out: have mercy, have mercy on us."

Today, just as in yesteryear, throughout Poland and in Polish American churches,  family and friends still submit the names of their dearly departed to the clergy for their name to be called out loud in church,  in remembrance, in intersession. To hear the names of  loved ones called out in the quiet stillness of the church, to hear everyone present raise their voices to pray for them is a true moment of spiritual and emotional communion between us, the living, and the dead.   In that hallowed space, as their name is called, we are with those who are no longer with us... but are not forgotten.

​Google image.