Sonderlinge reysen van Joseph, den geboornen Indiaan; bevattende een aanmerklĳke beschrĳvingh der landen,... (1706) - Page 14

Sacrament served without wine; with juice from raisins.

They serve the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper with unleavened bread. They have no wine, because this land has no grapevines, and therefore they soak raisins in water, then press them out, and use this juice instead of wine. These raisins are brought to them from Cathay northern China/the East.

The custom regarding the dead.

They bury their dead as we do. The author is a Portuguese. As soon as someone has died, many of them come together and then feast with one another for eight days. When this carousing has come to an end, they pray for the dead. It is also customary among them to make wills, and the contents thereof are executed very precisely.

Heirs.

Widow.

When someone dies without leaving a will, then the one who is closest to him is his heir. The widow of the deceased takes her own marriage portion with her and goes to live with her parents again. She may also not take another husband for the space of a year.

Fasting.

Holy days; and which are the most important of them among them.

Sunday.

They have the four Gospels of the four Evangelists. They observe the Fast and Advent very strictly, fasting and praying during that time. From Good Friday until Easter, they consume no food whatsoever. They spend the night of Good Friday listening to sermons and praying. They celebrate the annual Holy Days very strictly, namely: first, the Holy Easter day with the two following days. They deem the Octave of Easter day higher than any other day, because, according to their account, St. Thomas placed his hands in Christ's side on that same day and thereby experienced that he was not a spirit. After that, they celebrate the day of Christ's Ascension. Likewise that of the Holy Trinity, Mary's Birth, Purification, and Assumption, the Epiphany of Christ, and the days of all the Apostles. They also observe the Sundays with a special diligence. They celebrate the first day of the month of July very highly (as the heathens also do) for the sake of St. Thomas.