Thursday, December 17, 2009

Why I Celebrate

The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, with the sun at its lowest and weakest. In the Northern Hemisphere it usually occurs around December 21st.

In pagan Scandinavia the winter festival was the Yule, celebrated by burning the hearth fires of the magically significant Yule log. In the Celtic Druid culture, the Winter Solstice was celebrated by hanging sacred mistletoe over a doorway or in a room to offer goodwill to visitors. Germanic tribes decorated a pine or fir tree with candles and tokens. The Inca held midwinter ceremonies at temples that served as astronomical observatories like Machu Pichu.

Romans celebrated this event with Saturnalia, a festival of merrymaking, and decorating their homes and temples with holly and evergreens. Also popular was the exchange of small gifts thought to bring luck on the recipient.

In the fourth century AD, Christian authorities in Rome attempted to eliminate the pagan festivities by adopting December 25th as Christ's birthday. The effort was never completely successful, and eventually many Winter Solstice customs were incorporated into Christmas observances.

Since so many of these traditions have persisted for thousands of years despite extensive efforts to eliminate them, I think it best to celebrate the Winter Solstice with these ancient customs, recognizing our links to the rest of humanity, past and present.

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