When we moved to Mexico, I was surprised at the many holidays and observances that were completely new to me. (Day of the Dead, anyone?)
Since I am not well versed in Catholicism, I often have to rely on the internet to find out what the next big thing is. Of course, I try to check with in my Mexican friends to make sure I’m getting it right (and also to see if they want to go out for tacos, of course). And as always, I encourage them to correct me if I misstate anything.
The next event on the calendar is a perfect example: Assumption of Mary, celebrated on August 15th. According to the website timeandate.com, the Day of the Assumption of Mary, (Día de la Asunción de María) is a Catholic feast day celebrated in Mexico and around the world on August 15th to celebrate Jesus’ Mom’s arrival in heaven. Talk about a Welcome Home Party!
The story goes that when Mary died, her body didn’t decay but was “assumed” into heaven and reunited there with her soul. (Do you think it was an awkward reunion or were body and soul able to act as if nothing ever happened?)
Everybody knows Mary is a big deal. She’s the mother of all mothers. Well, one of them, anyway. You can debate who the father is all you want, but nobody’s denying Mary’s the mama. The most famous part of her story is that she delivered her baby in a stable. Um, pass the epidural, please. On second thought, make that a double!
The Day of the Assumption of Mary has been celebrated since the 4th century CE. Before then, the Egyptians (and later the Romans) had a harvest festival/ birthday party for the goddess Isis on August 12th or so. You know those Egyptians… they loved to party. Just look at their costumes!
Isis was a back-office goddess who became a rock star over the years and was worshipped from England to Afghanistan. (Corner office with key to the ladies’ room, please.) As a matter of fact, there are people who still worship her today. Among other talents, this working woman was known for helping the dead in the afterlife; if you were too much of a problem child, she’d just bring you back to life. Women were her peeps, though, so she also taught weaving, baking and beer-brewing.
Just like every other woman, Isis had her troubles, too. Her hubby was murdered so she figured she’d bring him back from the dead. I’m not sure if maybe he just didn’t cook long enough or if she forgot an ingredient, but Osiris ended up becoming a mummy. Ugh. For the goddess who is supposed to be queen of the underworld and the bringer-backer of the dead to the living, that had to be soooo embarrassing.
The good news is that hubs was able to update his resume with his new zombie skills and became king of the dead. Perfect! I love it when everything comes together, don´t you?
Now, the Romans loved a big shindig, too! (Togas, anyone?) So they had an official observance that linked the cult of Isis with Imperial Rome. Romans had this cool hoedown called the Lychnapsia, or festival of lamps but it’s not clear that Isis was specifically honored during that particular party. They were huge fans of hers, though. HUGE.
When Christians came along, I imagine they said something like, “Hey, who doesn’t love a good feast. Let’s have one of our own” and rather than calling it “Happy birthday Isis”, they called it” The Day of the Assumption of Mary”, which is clearly much easier to remember.
You might have noticed the dates are a little off, but that´s because the Egyptian and Roman calendars marked time differently. I guess when the Egyptians said, “Yeah we celebrate Isis on the fourth epagomenal day of Mesore” or whatever, the Romans said, “Um, yeah. Sure. Got it, the 15th of August.”
Just to keep it real, I asked my fellow Mexican residents what they know of the August 15th celebration. Some areas of Mexico take their Assumption Day more seriously than others, since Mary is considered their patron saint. And Mexicans like feasts and parties as much as any other country. For example, I’m told that Santa Maria has a Mole festival (that’s the food pronounced moh-lay, not the little burrowing creature) and that the food is delicious!
So that’s kind of how the Assumption of Mary was and is celebrated. So, whether you are Catholic or Isisian, Mexican or Egyptian, you, too, can enjoy a feast day on August 15th. To paraphrase a friend, everyone can enjoy the festival even without knowing its history.
Meanwhile, I’m going to see if I can find out what the next big Mexican bash is after that.
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