Spanish Catholic Changes

In the Mariana Islands, the techa is the traditional prayer leader who directs and recites the prayers and hymns for various religious activities within the Catholic Church, including rosaries or lisayo, novenas or nobena, and other devotions and special occasions.

The nobena, or novena, is a series of devotional prayers said over the course of nine days that are associated with the various feasts of the Catholic Church year. The purpose of a novena is to make a particular request through the intercession of the honoree for whom the novena is named.

Every human culture recognizes and accepts death as a natural part of life. Rituals, though, are often used by a society to sanctify death and help give closure to those experiencing the loss of a loved one.