The Nativity Play
Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus. It is traditional in
England for Primary schools to put on a Nativity play and every other year our
school perform in the village church for the parents and local people. Many
years ago live animals, including an ox and an ass would have been used in the
cast but now we make clever use of costumes. The play recreates the scene in
the stable and centres around the Christ Child made of wax in a crib of wood
and the parts of Mary, Joseph and the shepherds are played by the children.
Father Christmas
The English gift giver is known as Father Christmas. He wears a long red or
green robe and leaves gifts in stockings.
Christmas Stockings
The custom of hanging stockings comes from England. Father Christmas once
dropped some gold coins while coming down the chimney. The coins would have
fallen through the ash grate and been lost if they hadn't landed in a stocking
that had been hung out to dry. Since that time children have continued to hang
out stockings in hopes of finding them filled with gifts.
Actually, the hanging of stockings by the fire supposedly dates back to the
actual Saint Nicholas, a bishop in Myra in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey)
during the fourth century AD. According to the legend there was a poor man
with three daughters who could not provide a dowry for them to be married. One
night, Nicholas secretly dropped a bag of gold into an open window of the
house. The oldest daughter was then allowed to be married. This was repeated
later with the second daughter. Finally, determined to uncover his benefactor,
the father secretly hid each evening by his third daughter's window until he
caught the saint tossing in a bag of gold. Nicholas begged the man to not
reveal what he had done, not wanting to bring attention to himself. Word got
out anyway, and when anyone received a gift from an unknown source, it was
attributed to Saint Nicholas. The stockings come into play in one legend, in
that the third daughter had hung her stockings by the fire to dry them out
after washing them, and when St. Nicholas tossed in the bag of gold it landed
in one of the stockings. Thus the tradition began.
Letters to Father Christmas
Children write letters to Father Christmas listing their requests, but instead
of dropping them in the mailbox, the letters are tossed into the fireplace. The
draught carries the letters up the chimney and Father Christmas reads the smoke.
Boughs of Holly
The hanging of greenery around the house, such as holly and ivy, is a winter
tradition with origins well before the Christian era. Greenery was brought into
the house to lift sagging winter spirits and remind people that spring was not
far away. The needlelike points of holly leaves are thought by some to
resemble the crown of thorns that Jesus wore when He was crucified. The red
berries may symbolize the drops of blood He shed.
Mistletoe
Mistletoe is found on willow and apple trees (and garden centres) and the
practice of hanging it in the house goes back to the times of the ancient
Druids. It is supposed to possess mystical powers which bring good luck to the
household and ward off evil spirits.
The Christmas Tree
The fir tree has a long association with Christianity, it began in Germany
almost a 1000 years ago when St Boniface, who converted the German people to
Christianity, was said to have come across a group of pagans about to sacrifice
a young boy while worshipping an oak tree. In anger, St Boniface is said to
have cut down the oak tree and to his amazement a young fir tree sprung up from
the roots of the oak tree. St Boniface took this as a sign of the Christian
faith. It was not until the 16th century that fir trees were brought indoors
at Christmas time.
The decorating of Christmas trees, though primarily a German custom, has been
widely popular in England since 1841 when Prince Albert had a Christmas tree
set up in Windsor Castle for his wife Queen Victoria and their children. At
that time the tree would have been decorated with candles to represent stars
but because of the danger of fire an American telephonist invented the electric
Christmas lights we know today.
The Yule Log
A Nordic tradition of burning the Yule log goes back to medieval times. The
Yule log was originally an entire tree, carefully chosen, and brought into the
house with great ceremony. The large end would be placed into the hearth while
the rest of the tree stuck out into the room. The log would be lit from the
remains of the previous year's log which had been carefully stored away and
slowly fed into the fire through the twelve days of festivities. Having the
remains of the Yule log in the house throughout the year was thought to give
protection against fire and it was considered important that the re-lighting
process be carried out by someone with clean hands.
A Snack for Father Christmas
On Christmas Eve children leave out mince pies, brandy (or some similar warming
beverage) for Father Christmas, and a carrot for the reindeer.
Christmas Crackers
Christmas crackers are a party favourite in England. Conceived in 1850 by a
London confectioner called Tom Smith whilst sitting in front of his log fire.
His attention was focused on the sparks and cracks emanating from the flames
when suddenly he thought what an added attraction it would be if his sweets and
toys could be revealed with a crack when their fancy wrappings were pulled in
half. Today's crackers are short cardboard tubes wrapped in colourful paper
and traditionally there will be one cracker next to each plate on the Christmas
dinner table. When the crackers are pulled, out falls a colourful party hat, a
toy or gift and a festive joke. The party hats look like crowns and we assume
these symbolise the crowns worn by the three kings.
Carolling
Carolling is also believed to have begun in England. Wandering musicians would
travel from town to town - visiting castles and the homes of the rich. In
return for their performance, the musicians hoped to receive a hot meal or
money. The streets of England continue to see carollers, braving the winter
chill, and spreading the spirit of Christmas.
Gifts
Gifts are opened Christmas morning. The younger children will awake very early
in the morning to find a stocking at the end of their bed and some presents on
the floor. Later, the family will gather together to open all the presents
that have been left under the Christmas tree.
Plum Pudding
One of the special delicacies of Christmas is the Plum Pudding. It is an
English dish dating back to the Middle Ages. Suet, flour, sugar, raisins,
nuts, and spices are tied loosely in cloth and boiled until the ingredients are
"plum," meaning they have enlarged enough to fill the cloth. It is then
unwrapped, sliced like cake, and topped with cream.
Wassail
"Wassailing" is an ancient custom that is rarely practiced today. The word
"wassail" is derived from the Anglo-Saxon phrase
waes hael
, which means "good health". Originally, wassail was a beverage made of mulled
ale, curdled cream, roasted apples, eggs, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and sugar. It
was served from huge bowls, often of silver or pewter for the purpose of
enhancing the general merriment of the season. The legend says that a
beautiful Saxon maiden named Rowena presented Prince Vortigen with a bowl of
wine while toasting him with the words "Waes Hael". Over the centuries a great
deal of ceremony developed around the custom of drinking wassail. The bowl was
carried into a room with great fanfare, a traditional carol about the drink was
sung, and finally, the steaming hot beverage was served.
Boxing Day
The celebration of Boxing Day, which takes place on December 26 - the feast of
St. Stephen, is a part of the holiday season unique to Great Britain.
Traditionally, it is on this day that the alms box at every English church is
opened and the contents are distributed to the poor. Also, this is the day
that servants traditionally got the day off to celebrate with their families.
It became traditional for working people to break open their tip boxes on this
day.
Christmas in Scotland
Christmas in Scotland was a rather sombre occasion pre-World War 2. Indeed it
wasn't even a public holiday, but a working day. However this tradition has
long since passed and now Christmas is a major celebration as the lights and
festivities in the cities and towns testify. Indeed it has become as important
as New Year's Eve which in Scotland is called
Hogmanay
. This word is derived from a kind of oat cake that was traditionally given to
children on New Year's Eve.
Also in Scotland, the first person to set foot in a residence in a New Year is
thought to profoundly affect the fortunes of the inhabitants. Generally
strangers are thought to bring good luck. Depending on the area, it may be
better to have a dark-haired or fair-haired stranger set foot in the house.
This tradition is widely known as
"first footing"
. In England it is said that a stranger coming through the door carrying a
lump of coal will bring good luck.
Christingle
The custom of Christingle began just before Christmas in 1747 in the castle of
Marienborn, not far from Frankfurt in Germany when Bishop Johannes von
Watteville held a special service for the children of the congregation of the
Moravian Church. He asked them questions about the Savior's birth and read
verses that some of the children had written. Describing the happiness that
comes to us from the Savior's birth, Brother Johannes told how Christ had lit a
"flame of love" in each of our hearts, that should always burn there. Each
child received a lighted candle, with a red frill, to remind them of the
blood-red flame of love Christ came to light in each heart.
In Britain the Christingle service is held in our churches on the Sunday before
Christmas or on Christmas Eve and may start with a Nativity Play, followed by
Christmas readings, recitations and carols. The climax of the service is
reached when each child receives a lighted candle, trimmed with red and white
paper or ribbon, pushed into an orange and surrounded by nuts, raisins and
sweets. The children walk in procession around the darkened church and in this
magical moment, the visual symbol of the lighted candles tells the truth of the
Christmas story - that in the darkness of the world there has shined a great
Light.
The candle is said to be the symbol of Christ as the light of the world; the
red and white paper, a reminder of the 'blood of the Lamb' which 'washes us and
makes us whiter than snow'; the orange represents the globe; and the sweets
represent the sweetness of belonging to the Savior. Some children in the UK
make their own Christingles in their classrooms and gather together to light
them in a church service that raises money for the Church of England Children's
Society.
