Christmas Abounds with Age Old Traditions

In just three short days we will gather with family around the Christmas tree to open gifts and make merry memories. Colorful lights will glow, and carols will play as laughter rings out while we exclaim with delight as we pull wrapping paper off a box to reveal its contents. This scene plays out countless times in countless homes, but how much is known about why we do what we do?

Take the colors red and green for example. We’ve always taken for granted that these are the colors of Christmas, but how many of us have wondered why they were chosen as such? This actually began centuries ago when the ancient Celts admired the holly plant’s ability to survive the harsh elements of winter. It was their steadfast belief that holly beautified earth during the cold, dark days and they used it to decorate during their celebration of the Winter Solstice to bring about good luck and protection.

In the Bible, red and green epitomize Jesus’ life, with red representing His blood and green embodying eternal life as the evergreen tree remains so throughout winter. Also, the leaves and berries on a holly plant have come to symbolize the crown of thorns Jesus wore when He was crucified.

These aforementioned traditions notwithstanding, one individual we should thank for making red and green the colors of Christmas is Haddon Sundblom, the artist hired by Coca Cola to draw Santa Claus for a series of ads.

Up until then, Santa had never been depicted consistently. Typically, he was shown as thin with robes that ran the gamut of blue, green, and red. Sundblom, however, opted to portray him as fat and jolly, and bedecked in red robes. As the advertisement’s popularity increased, Sundblom’s Santa became imprinted in people’s minds as “the real one.” In people’s combined imaginations, Santa’s red robes along with the green of fir trees as well as holly and poinsettia were solidified as the colors of Christmas.

Even poinsettias themselves have a story which begins in its native Mexico. According to legend, modest weeds a poor girl names Pepita left as an offering to baby Jesus at a nativity scene miraculously transformed into the gorgeous flower. From that point, the brilliant red flowers were given the name ‘Flores de Noche Buena’ or ‘Flowers of the Holy Night.’ The shape of the flower and it’s leaves are thought to resemble the Star of Bethlehem. In 1828, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Joel Roberts Poinsett brought the plants that now bear his name to the states where it then became the official flower of Christmas. Just be sure to keep them away from pets as their leaves are toxic.

Christmas trees also have a story as to why we put them up that goes back many years. Originally Pagans displayed evergreen branches as a reminder that despite the darkness of winter, spring would once again return. Romans would place them around temples in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture. The first time an evergreen was used in a Christmas celebration was either in Tallinn, Estonia or Riga, Latvia. Both claim the honor of being first. In the 16th century, German Christians brought the trees indoors as a representation of everlasting life. When the news got around that Queen Victoria had her husband Prince Albert, a German, set a Christmas tree up in their palace, the practice quickly became the pinnacle of Christmas imagery in both England and America. At first, however, most 19th century American’s thought Christmas trees unusual. The first Christmas trees being used is documented in 1820’s Pennsylvania’s German community.

But what about all those lights we place on our trees? This, too, goes back to the 16th century. Theologian Martin Luther is thought to be the first to put lights on a Christmas tree. According to legend, he was walking through a forest at night and was taken by the brilliance of the stars glowing through the trees. When he returned home, he decided to replicate this for his family by erecting a tree in their living room replete with lighted candles on its branches.

Tinsel used to be quite popular on Christmas trees, though reportedly not so much these days as it is a serious hazard for pets. A European folktale gives credit for tinsel to the webs of “Christmas spiders” for the tradition of shiny threads hanging on the tree. Tinsel was originally made out of silver as a representation of wealth, but it was expensive, and it tarnished. As the tradition was brought to America, other metals were utilized but they all had downsides and fell out of favor.

Candy canes were reportedly invented by a choir master to occupy the boys in his care during long Christmas services. They were made into the shape of a shepherd’s crook to embody Jesus as the great shepherd. In some tellings of how candy canes came to be, the white portion signifies purity and the red the blood of Christ. When candy canes began being mass produced in America in the 1920’s, a Christmas symbol came into being.

Christmas carols came about when Christians began replacing pagan winter festivals with Christmas. Many composers wished to write their own but as they were always in Latin, they were not popular. Un 1233, St. Francis of Assisi began staging nativity plays that included songs telling of the birth of Christ. These were sung in a language members understood so they were able to sing along. Since then, Christmas carols have never failed to imbue listeners with the holiday spirit.

Lastly, is the tradition of milk and cookies for Santa. Begun in medieval Germany, children left food out at night during the Christmas season in hopes of receiving presents from another white bearded fellow named Odin, the all-powerful Norse god who traveled on the back of his eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. The custom as we know it today began during the Great Depression. Parents used milk and cookies as a method to teach their progeny that even when money was hard to come by, they still needed to show consideration towards others and be grateful for the blessings in their lives.
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Christmas as we know it has evolved over the years and each new tradition has only served to make our celebration even more festive and fun. As we celebrate this year, we can thank a frustrated choir master, a poor girl in Mexico, St. Francis of Assisi, and more for the things we do and take for granted. Meanwhile, we also make traditions of our own that we treasure and hand down whether it be assisting those who are less fortunate or building a gingerbread house with our children. Christmas is a time for tradition as we celebrate the birth of a baby in a manger and what that birth symbolizes. So, to you and yours, enjoy your traditions and have a very Merry Christmas!