In ancient times, the winter months saw celebrations the world over, from the pagan festival of winter solstice, to the Scandanavian Yule, when yule loges are lit for Thor, the god of thunder, to the Roman festival of Natalis Solis Invicti, a worship of solar gods. The Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus is different everywhere in the world. Every culture has its own stories and customs, incorporating elements from the old pagan traditions and the traditions of its people.
Spot the Witch
December 13th, Luca Nap (Luca Day) is a fantastically strange part of the holiday season. Luca herself has been called everything from witch to saint who hunted witches, and Luca day is a Halloween-like celebration in the midst of Christmas, beginning with the building of a „Luca Chair”. On December 13th, men would begin carving a Luca Chair, which he would work on very slowly every day until Christmas Eve. The finished stool, to be made with nine different kinds of wood, was brought to Midnight Mass. There, he climbed up on his Luca Chair, and from his high vantage point, he could spot the devil horns of the witches who hid among the congregation. Then he must run home with the witches hot on his trail and throw the Luca chair into the fire or be torn asunder by the witches. Though the tradition of spotting witches at midnight mass may have died out, a Hungarian saying lives on: „Készül, mint a Luca széke” or „You are preparing it as slowly as a Luca Chair!”
December 13th, Luca Nap (Luca Day) is a fantastically strange part of the holiday season. Luca herself has been called everything from witch to saint who hunted witches, and Luca day is a Halloween-like celebration in the midst of Christmas, beginning with the building of a „Luca Chair”. On December 13th, men would begin carving a Luca Chair, which he would work on very slowly every day until Christmas Eve. The finished stool, to be made with nine different kinds of wood, was brought to Midnight Mass. There, he climbed up on his Luca Chair, and from his high vantage point, he could spot the devil horns of the witches who hid among the congregation. Then he must run home with the witches hot on his trail and throw the Luca chair into the fire or be torn asunder by the witches. Though the tradition of spotting witches at midnight mass may have died out, a Hungarian saying lives on: „Készül, mint a Luca széke” or „You are preparing it as slowly as a Luca Chair!”
The Birth
By Mid-December, children dressed in folk costumes begin to travel from house to house, telling the Christmas legend (called Bethlehemesek), as a nativity play, puppet show, or Hungarian rhyme, in hopes of being rewarded with small gifts, wine, pálinka, or slices of beigli (rolled dough filled with poppyseeds or walnuts). The navity (the story of the birth of Jesus) is represented through plays and scenes around the world. The Bethlehemesek tradition in Hungary traces back to an ancient custom in which shepards and village folk acted out dramatic versions of the birth of Christ. Today, the plays still incorperate the folk humor and slapstick they had in medieval village communities.
Every Time a Bell Rings…
The month of baking beigli, hand embroidering gifts, and lighting the advent wreath all leads up to Christmas Eve. The eager children will be banished to another room, where they will wait until they hear the much anticipated ringing of a bell. Only then can they enter the darkened room where the Christmas tree has been put up by their parents with the help of baby Jesus and his angels. The Christmas tree is part of an ancient pagan tradition, when the Winter Solstice was celebrated with evergreen boughs. As ancient cultures around the world converted to Christianity, Christmas slowly replaced that biggest celebration of the year, winter solstice, and many of the pagan traditions surrounding it were carried over and adapted into Christmas traditions.
The Hungarian tree is aglow with ornaments, candles, and gold and red wrapped candies called szaloncukor, chocolates filled with marzipan and raspberry or orange jelly. The family gathers around the bright tree, singing carols and exchanging presents brought by baby Jesus and his angels. Afterwards, many families attend Midnight Mass, a worldwide gathering marking the beginning of Christmas Day. December 25th is a time for the immediate family to spend together and feast, and the day after Christmas is spent with the extended family, when all gather together to drink, feast, worship, exchange gifts, sing songs, and be merry.
The Hungarian tree is aglow with ornaments, candles, and gold and red wrapped candies called szaloncukor, chocolates filled with marzipan and raspberry or orange jelly. The family gathers around the bright tree, singing carols and exchanging presents brought by baby Jesus and his angels. Afterwards, many families attend Midnight Mass, a worldwide gathering marking the beginning of Christmas Day. December 25th is a time for the immediate family to spend together and feast, and the day after Christmas is spent with the extended family, when all gather together to drink, feast, worship, exchange gifts, sing songs, and be merry.
By Michelle Enemark
