Winter solstice holidays|
Winter solstice holidays |
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(In my part of the world, (the astronomical) winter begins Thursday 22 December 2011 at 06:30 Central European Time and ends in 2012, Tuesday 20 March at 06:14 - read here why)
Where do these holidays come from? A history... Like many other holidays we know today, the festivities commonly knows as Christmas, established by the Christian Church in the A.D. 375's, too, has a so-called Pagan origin. That doesn't mean it does not have religious backgrounds, but it is based on several beliefs. Some of these beliefs have Celtic origin. About 2500 years ago, the Celts (so named by Greek writers) ruled most of Europe, but were pushed back by the Vandals and Romans to the far west-north-west of Europe: Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall (in the south-west of England), Brittany (in the north-west of France) and Galicia (in the north-west of Spain). In Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Brittany, a lot of people speak a Celtic language: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton. The first basis of the festivities is the winter solstice (more about winter solstice here). In the so-called "Pagan Year", the day in winter when the day is shortest and the night is longest (the winter solstice), is, as believed by some, generally a time of drunkenness, revelry and debauchery. The pagan Romans called this celebration Saturnalia, in honor of their god Saturn, and the festival lasted from the 17th to the 24th of December, with gifts exchanged, especially on the last two days. Then, on the 25th, they celebrated "The Birth of the Unconquerable Sun," as the days began to lengthen and the sun began to regain its dominance; it is said that it has been generally believed among pagans that the sun dies during winter solstice, and then rises from death. Here is the common link with the Christian views on Christmas, named after the Holy Mass of the celebration of the birth of the prophet Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the main figure and foundation of most western religions, dating back as far as the late Roman days. Many people know and many people don't know, but Jesus Christ wasn't born in December for sure. And he wasn't born in the year zero or one either. The reason why his birth is such a mystery, is that it wasn't celebrated for roughly 300 years after he was born. Simply because the Romans didn't like it and because he wasn't regarded in such manner then as today. In 375 A.D., the (Catholic) church (which was birthed from the merger of (parts of) paganism with Christianity) announced that the birth date of Christ would be celebrated on December 25 also, and allowed some of the older celebrations, such as feasting, dancing and the exchange of gifts, to be incorporated into the observance of Christmas. The use of greenery, however, popularly used to decorate homes and holy places during the Saturnalia, was still prohibited as pagan idolatry, but later over the centuries, this was also incorporated into Christmas and it remained ever since. Westerners celebrate Christmas as one of the most exciting holidays; Christians honor their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and celebrate His birth. But today Christmas is not only about Jesus, but also about Santa Claus, reindeer, elves, mistletoe, the Christmas tree, Yule Log, Yuletide and gifts. And then there is the Jewish feast of Chanukah. And where does St. Nicholas (Sinterklaas) fit in? What gives? Santa Claus was brought to America by Dutch colonists in the 17th century, when Sinterklaas was adopted by the English-speaking community under the name of Santa Claus. Ever since then he has remained the patron of the gift-giving festivity of Christmas. In the United Kingdom Sinterklaas and Santa Claus are known as Father Christmas. One of the symbols of the life found in the celebration of Saturnalia, was the use of evergreens. These plants which stayed green all year long, were often used in different cultures as symbols of life and rebirth. They were sometimes decorated as a form of worship in some cultures in religious ceremonies dealing with fertility. Mistletoe was considered a curative plant and was used in many ancient medicine recipes. The Celts even believed that the plant, which is a parasite that lives on trees, contained the soul of the tree it lived on. The Druids used Mistletoe in their religious ceremonies. The Druid priests would cut it up and distribute it to the people who would place the cuttings over the doorways of their homes. This was supposed to protect the dwellers from various forms of evil. Mistletoe was also sacred to the Druids, and was worshipped by them, and they used it to cast spells, the principal belief being that if they held it over a woman's head she was powerless to resist, and they could then have their way with her sexually. From this comes our custom of hanging it over doorways, and the tradition that if a girl is caught under the sprig of mistletoe she may be kissed and may not resist. The Yule Log tradition comes to us from Scandinavia, where the pagan sex and fertility god Jul, or Jule (pronounced "Yule"), was honored in a twelve-day celebration in December. A large, single log (generally considered to have been a phallic idol) was kept with a fire against it for twelve days, a different sacrifice to Jul being offered in the fire on each of the twelve days. Merry Christmas in Scandinavia is still wished by the term "God Jul", or "Good Yule"... The period of twelve days, now counted as the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany (January 6th), was originally the period in which twelve daily sacrifices were offered to the Yule Log, honoring the fertility god Jule (Yule). When we send "Yuletide Greetings", this is what it means; we are sending greetings in the name of this Scandinavian fertility god and his festival. OK, but what about the other figures, the Elves, reindeer, Santa and Mrs. Santa? An elf is considered a tree demon. A spirit who lives in the trees of evergreens and a few select others. Druids and common Celtic folk have worshipped evergreens and their spirits that live in them. They go by different names depending on the culture such as: Dryads, pixies, genii, jinn, huldefolk, dwarfs, pixies, trolls, etc. Many pagan societies have worshipped a hearth god, clad in red, who came down the chimney to bless those who pleased him and to curse those who didn't. Food and drink offerings were left for him on hearth or mantel, and effort to please and appease him. There are such red-clad hearth gods worshipped in India and China today. Santa Claus, as we know him, is a composite of many (un-Christian) traditions, taking the form, in which we now depict him, only about 100 years ago. Yes, only one century. Coca-Cola, who's logo is red and white, seized the opportunity and made "Santa Claus" like westerners "know" him today: a chubby man with a white beard and a red suit riding a slay with reindeer, attended by a host of supernatural elves (spirits), able to travel over the entire surface of the Earth in a few hours, saying "Ho Ho Ho"... However, they did not invent how Santa looks: the German painter Thomas Nast, who emigrated to the United States, painted in 1870 Santa Claus, based on Clement Clarke Moore's "The Night Before Christmas - A Visit from St.Nicholas"... May Christians celebrate Christmas without getting into conflict with their beliefs? Yes, they may. There is ample evidence of this and this can be found also on the net. May others as well? Sure. Today, Christmas is a celebration that takes place on 25 December in the western world and 6 January in the Eastern Orthodox world. In "the west", Christians have a holy mass in church to celebrate Jesus Christ (although you will find a lot of controversy about this). Most people are off from work and celebrate this time with family and loved ones. They usually erect a decked and illuminated pine tree indoors and decorate with numerous related items. Many exchange gifts, supposedly brought by Santa Claus. Some completely illuminate and decorate their home. In the richer part of the world, there's an extreme buying spree and commercialism is at its top these days. Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas), as an (unofficial) holiday only observed in the Netherlands, Belgium and a part of Germany, is 6 December, the day the saint is believed to have died, but the Netherlands celebrate it 5 December, which is why they, the Dutch, open their presents in the evening of the 5th, whilst the Belgians open their presents in the morning of the 6th, but many businesses have parties for children starting as early as mid-november, when Sinterklaas arrives in the country. Links:
There is so much to be found on the internet about Christmas in particular and winter festivities and holidays in general! It's an interesting discovery. However, please bear in mind, that if you choose to research these customs using the internet, that you will come across many pages which are written either from "tv show level", or, for the more "in-depth" pages, from "Wiccan" or from "Christian" views. Much of this can be woefully inaccurate and poorly researched. But some of them are really excellent!
This page will not explain Sinterklaas (St. Nicholas) or Chanukah, as that is very well explained on these pages: Why doesn't winter always begin at 21 December at 12:00 Central European Time? (Northern Hemisphere) At the beginning of winter, the sun is at its lowest point above the horizon. This can be on 20 (only in some leap years), 21 or 22 December. The differences are caused by the fact that the tropical year, on which the western calender is based, does not have an exact number of days and the leapday because of that. The day that winter begins, is in general the shortest day of the year, but it doesn't mean that the sun rises latest and sets earliest. In the northern hemisphere, in the Netherlands, from 13 December the suns sets later again already, and not until from 31 December the sun rises earlier again. This is because the earth's trajectory isn't circular, causing the sun in winter to "move" faster than in summer. This causes the sun passing through the south a little later each day now. Also the length of the day (the difference between sunrise and sunset) depends on the latitute. In the south of France, already on the 9th of December there is the earliest sunset, and not until the 3rd of January is the latest sunrise. The inclination of the earth's axis is the reason for the change in seasons. Because of this, in the northern hemisphere the sun is lower above the horizon than in summer. In the winter the sun has a shorter trajectory above the horizon than in the summer, making the sun visible for a much shorter time. People who prefer summer over winter may be pleased to know that, according to the astronomical calender, winter is the shortest season with 88.89 days, and it stayes shortest until the year 6430. The summer is the longest season, and it has been since the year 1250, with 93.65 days. The farther north, the shorter time the sun is above the horizon. North of the polar circle the sun isn't visible at all for some number of days, or (far north) a few months. Even in a small country like the Netherlands, the difference between north and south is noticable: in the far south of Limburg, The Netherlands, the sun is 20 minutes longer visible than in the far north of Groningen, and that's only 10 minutes travel with a fighter jet at full speed... |
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