Happy Winter Solstice!
Meet Sweet Gypsy
Happy Winter Solstice to one and all! We sure do miss you Cuzzie, hope you are doing OK up there in Virginia ... heaven knows you can't miss us much as often as the phone and face-book chats are happening !!!
"The December solstice will occur at 17:47 (or 5.47pm) Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on December 21, 2009. It is also known as the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere and the summer solstice in the southern hemisphere due to the seasonal differences" (timeanddate.com)
So Happy Winter Solstice to all!
And so....
Christmas was first added to the Roman Catholic Church calendar as a religious feast day in the fourth century A.D. But Christmas is not the only celebration held around this time of year. December 25 was a significant date for various early cultures. The ancient Babylonians believed the son of the queen of heaven was born on December 25. The Egyptians celebrated the birth of the son of the fertility goddess Isis on the same date, while ancient Arabs contended that the moon was born on December 24. The Romans celebrated Saturnalia, a feast named for Saturn, god of agriculture, on December 21.
Before European contact, the Indian tribes of North America did not celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, since they hadn't heard of him. However, many of the American Indian people of North America have been Christianised for several hundred years. Over this time, customs which were introduced to them by the missionaries, have become adapted to the native cultures, and are an integral part of their Christmas traditions today, just as they are in most American homes. Although still today many celebrate all faiths within spirituality of oneness, or a Metaphysical approach to the Universal power of oneness!
Many Native American people found that the story of Christmas and Christ's birth fulfilled tribal prophecies and found the message of Jesus to be consistent with the truth that was handed down by their ancestors.
Christmas wasn't always celebrated in the US the way it is today. In fact, the Puritans of Massachusetts banned any observance of Christmas, and anyone caught observing the holiday had to pay a fine. Connecticut had a law forbidding the celebration of Christmas and the baking of mincemeat pies. A few of the earliest settlers did celebrate Christmas, but it was far from a common holiday in the colonial era.
Before the Civil War, the North and South were divided on the issue of Christmas. Most Northerners thought it was a sinful display, while Southerners saw it as an important social occasion. The first three states to make Christmas a legal holiday were in the South: Alabama in 1836, Louisiana and Arkansas in 1838. It did not become a US National holiday until 1870.
Christmas celebrations and traditions, as most of us in the US celebrate them today, became more common in America during the mid-1800s. The introduction of Christmas services in Sunday schools reduced religious opposition to a secular festival, as opposed to a somber religious day, while the Charles Dickens novel A Christmas Carol popularized the holiday as a family event, and women's magazines promoted the ideas of decorating for this holiday.
Some scholars suspect that Christians chose to celebrate Christ's birth on December 25 to make it easier to convert the pagan tribes. Referring to Jesus as the “light of the world” also fit with existing pagan beliefs about the birth of the sun. The ancient “return of the sun” philosophy had been replaced by the “coming of the son” message of Christianity.
Many Native Americans in North America, and Aboriginal groups elsewhere in the world, as well as other pagan religions such as Wicca, did observe a celebration near Christmas time, called the Winter Solstice. The Winter Solstice is the longest night of the year and falls on December 21-22 and was celebrated in the Americas long before European influence arrived. Different Indian tribes associate different beliefs and rituals with it.
For example, the Hopi tribal celebrations are dedicated to giving aid and direction to the sun which is ready to return and give strength to new life. Their ceremony is called Soyal. It lasts for 20 days and includes prayerstick making, purification, rituals, and a concluding rabbit hunt, feast and blessings.
The First Native American Christmas Carol
The first written native American Christmas carol was written down by a Jesuit missionary priest, Friar Jean de Brebeuf, around 1640-41, for the Huron Indians. The Hurons built a small chapel of fir trees and bark in honor of the manger at Bethlehem. This became the 'stable' where Jesus was born. Some Hurons travelled as much as two days to be there for the Christmas celebration.
The animals at the manger were the Fox, the Buffalo and the Bear. The Hurons also made a traditional tent of skins and their nativity figures were all dressed as native Americans. This Huron Carol, originally written in the Huron language and later translated to French, has become a well known and much loved carol today.
Santa Claus, St. Nicolas, or Handsome Fellow, a Native American Santa
The American version of St. Nicholas, or Santa Claus originally came from the Dutch version called Sinter Klaas. This tradition was brought with the Dutch people who settled Amsterdam, New York.
Our modern day version of how Santa Claus should look comes from the Christmas poem A Visit From St. Nicholas by Clement C. Moore. Written for his children in 1823, the family poem was later published for the general public and included what became the now famous picture of Santa Claus by Thomas Nast.
Countless legends are told about the Patron Saint of Giving known as St. Nicholas. He has been the patron saint of Russia, Moscow, Greece, children, sailors, prisoners, bakers, pawnbrokers, shopkeepers and wolves.
His gift-giving role in Christmas rites probably comes from his fame as the friend of children. This Christmas legend tells us that he also used to give anonymous donations of gold coins to persons in need. His cult spread in Europe and Christmas presents were distributed on December 6th when the celebration of St. Nicholas took place.
According to these legends, St. Nicholas was born in the city of Patara, and traveled to Palestine and Egypt when he was young. He was later imprisoned by the Emperor Diocletian, but was later released by the more humanitarian Emperor Constantine. He attended the first council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. St Nicholas reportedly died about 350 AD.
The relics of St.Nicholas are in the basilica of St. Nicola, in Bari, Italy (they were stolen from Myra in 1087 AD). For this reason he is sometimes known as St.Nicholas of Bari.
Within both Western and Eastern Christian Churches similar mythology, or tradition, exists.
There are many names for Santa around the world, but since I live in Florida.... I just call him SANTA... and I holler each and every time I see him; assuring him that "yes Santa, I have been very good this year!".
(thanks to http://www.aaanativearts.com/)
And so ... IT IS GOOD!
Walk In Beauty!
author of Healing Heartaches, Stories of Loss and Life
Order your autographed copies at:
http:www.drsherryeshowalter.com
4 comments:
Thank you for one of the most helpful posts of the season
Wow, thanks for the fabulous explaination of how this came about. I just knew the "christians" would try to claim credit, rather than tell ALL the facts. A celebration this universal had to have more than one explaination. You did a FABULOUS job putting it all together. No wonder you are a writer.
Love your blogs. Hope you have a very special holiday.
Even if you already knew all the facts, this post was more inclusive. At least some of us can feel good about our solstice practices rather than feel bad cause we don't got a tree.
Thank you for including everyone
Thank you for one of the most helpful posts of the season
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