January 6, the twelfth night after Christmas is traditionally
the time to put away the tinsel, the cards and the Christmas decorations. It was
also the last night for “revelry, disguises and games” before the return to
work and for many of us, that is still true.
While I was doing that I was thinking about the origin of
the motley collection of customs and traditions we have and how adoption
and adaption of customs are nothing new. Christians being as guilty of doing it as
anyone, no -one should mind if I like
carol singing even though I am not necessarily a believer.
Carols as it turned out were originally a ring dance
unrelated to Christianity and held at any time of year with people joining
hands and singing. However, by the sixteenth century, they were restricted to
Christmas and at one stage reserved only for the Bishop and clergy. This did
not last long as people insisted on singing them in streets and public places
although the emphasis on Christ remained.
The giving of gifts at this time of year originated with the
Romans, but this custom was also Christianised.
The name Yuletide and the Yule Log also predate Christianity and refer
to the Scandinavian Winter Festival of Juul. Mistletoe also dates from pagan
times. It was revered by the Druids because it remained green in winter and was
believed to enhance soil fertility and reproductive power (think ancient
Viagra). Kissing under it was believed to increase offspring, farm animals and
crops.
Although there are several legends about the fir tree, the oldest also refer to magical powers. Because it also remained green in winter, it was believed to
symbolise the victory of light over darkness and ensure the return of
vegetation. Christmas trees did not become popular in the English -speaking
world until Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s German-born husband, erected one in
Windsor Castle.
Christmas itself– The Christ Mass, was celebrated at various
times throughout the year since Christ’s exact birthdate was not known, but became
fixed at December 25 by Pope Julius in 350 A.D. to counter the pagan festival
of Saturn that took place at the same time of year.
The word ‘Xmas’ on the other hand, is not the commercial
corruption of Christmas that I always took it to be. It refers to the Greek
letter ‘X” referring to Christos and dates from times when Christ’s name could
not be spoken.
Other customs are only very recent. Take the Christmas card
for example. That’s only been around since 1843 when Sir Henry Cole produced
the first ones for his friends. The
ancient Egyptians however, used to strike special medals for New Year wishing the
Emperor Hadrian a “Happy and prosperous New Year” as far back as 2 A.D. Sixteenth century woodcuts have also been
found, bearing a similar message.
The image which we most frequently associate with Santa
Claus, a jolly, rotund, bearded man dressed in red, was created by American cartoonist
Thomas Nash for Harper’s Weekly in
1863. Originally he based his illustrations on a poem written by an eminent
Professor Dr Clement Clarke Moore for
his daughters in 1822, but as he continued to draw for Harper’s for the
next 20 years, Santa gradually evolved
to the one children recognise today. Dr Moore’s poem also mentioned Santa’s
sleigh and named all the reindeer. This
inspired another artist to create the story of Rudolph the Red -Nosed Reindeer,
for a children’s colouring book being given away by a Mail Order firm in
Chicago in 1939. It became so popular that there were several reprints and the story
was made into a song in 1949.
Most of this information comes from R. Brasch’s The Book of the Year (1993, Harper
Collins) which includes the origin of many customs and traditions. I have
only focused on some of the Christmas ones here, but there are many others - such
as why we use candles and tinsel, and why we hang up our stockings by the
fireplace.
I wonder how many people watching Sydney’s $6 million New
Year fireworks, know that having fun and making a noise at New Year was an ancient
custom to keep away evil spirits? This was another pagan custom traditionally
held on the vernal equinox to mark the coming of Spring. Because the newly
elected Roman consuls took their places on January 1, this date became the
start of the New Year from 153 BC onwards. At first Christians opposed New Year
celebrations because of their pagan origin, but later they were given a
Christian spin and turned into a religious festival commemorating Christ’s
circumcision. The adoption of January 1 as the start of the year did not happen
until Pope Gregory’s calendar reforms of 1582, and was not widely adopted
outside the Catholic Church until many centuries later. England, Wales and the American colonies did
not adopt this date until 1752.
As we put away our Christmas toys, let us reflect on how irrational
many of our customs are, but also how pleasant and interesting and how they do
bring us together. Just before Christmas, there was a huge outcry when the Herald -Sun published a story about how
a Preschool in Victoria was no longer putting on Nativity plays or placing
the focus on Christianity because so many of its pupils were from non –
Christian backgrounds. The general tone of the comments (remember this was talkback
radio territory) was either “Well, if they don’t like our culture, they should go
back to where they came from.” Or, “If people aren’t going to celebrate the
birth of Christ, they shouldn’t be allowed to have holidays and should be forced
to keep working over Christmas.”
What is clear from the above, is that people have always enjoyed festivals, regardless of the reason - reason doesn't have too much to do with it and we should celebrate however we see fit, all the more wonderful if many of us share the same spirit and tradition. Love, peace and tolerance are what Christ taught and I am all in favour of those if not generally enamoured of religion in its various forms, particularly those inclined towards oppression, persecution, repression etc. of others.
 |
| Lovely Chrissy card from my sister. At least with this one you can take the little figure off the front and use it as a Christmas decoration. |
Comments