Every year, on the first Saturday before the Day of Archangel Michael (8 November), Orthodox Christians mark Archangel All Soul’s Day, the last of the three All Soul’s days set down by the Christian Orthodox church. According to the canon, they all fall on a Saturday, a day set aside for our dear departed. After a divine service, a memorial service takes place at which believers pray for the souls of their deceased family members and relatives.
On the Friday before All Soul’s Day, Christians go to the graves of their loved ones where they clean, incense and put flowers on them. Finally, they pour red wine over the grave and light a candle as a symbol of the immortality of the soul. The incense on its part symbolizes pure prayer, the flowers – the virtues of the deceased. On Archangel All Soul’s Day people sit down to a shared meal that has to include seven different dishes (including the ones the deceased loved most). Food is given away on Archangel All Soul’s Day with the words “God rest”. Old people say if you see a fly or a butterfly come near you on this day, it is the soul of the deceased.
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