2005 - december

Christmas Customs and Old Beliefs

Christmas used to be inseparable from the many customs that belonged to it, but these customs have by now faded into cherished memories of the past. Still, Christmas has remained one of the most intimate and sacred festive periods, which cannot be complete without church rituals and old customs.

The series of folk customs starts with the day of Luca in September. According to old belief, Saint Luca turned into a witch on December 13, as a result of the long dark winter nights. Methods to scare off witches included pushing garlic into keyholes, sticking a knife in the doorframe, using garlic to draw crosses on the doors or placing brooms on each other in order to form a cross. It was not allowed to borrow or lend anything on this day, in order to prevent the witches from getting their hands on it. Girls would try to see the future on this day and predict their prospective partners. They were not allowed to work on this day because it was believed that chicken would stop laying eggs if girls weave or saw anything on the day of Luca. Boys would go around visiting friends on this day and expect donations in exchange for good wishes. In case they did not receive donations, they would throw curses on the host.

Advent is a period that starts on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and lasts until December 24. It also represents the start of the church year. These four weeks are the period traditionally dedicated to making plans for Christmas. The preparation of Advent wreaths is a relatively new custom and it also involves lighting up a new candle every Sunday as Christmas approaches. Families would spend the evenings next to candlelight, singing Advent songs. The festive dinner would be presented after the rise of the evening-star on Christmas Day, but before the meal, the head of the family would always go out in the yard to shoot in the air in order to scare away bad souls. In the meantime, the mother would lay the table because dinner had to be consumed without interruptions. The family would pray and they had garlic and nuts dipped in honey for the first course in order to scare off the evil. Animals around the house would also be treated especially well during Christmas because they were thought to have special powers during this period. For instance some believed that animals could speak at Christmas. In certain countries, special small Christmas trees were erected for the animals even though the church prohibited this custom of pagan origin.

Christmas customs that have survived even to this day include the special dinner menu, which must always include fish and a type of brioche with walnut and poppy-seed called beigli, as well as apples symbolising the unity of the family. In many places, they would cut an apple in as many slices as the number of people sitting around the table and the head of the family will remind the others that the family should stick together in the coming year and be as round and complete as the apple.

Many folk customs around Christmas aim at scaring off evil harmful spirits with the help of noise, animal skins, masques and costumes. This is also the time for children to act out Bethlehem plays, which were initially staged in churches but later children started going around from house to house with their acts. Animals often feature in the Bethlehem play and the baby Jesus is usually played by a real baby. The characters – shepherds, angels, Maria and Joseph – act out the Biblical story of Jesus’s birth and then hand over gifts and good wishes. The hosts would then treat them for a meal or sweets in exchange.

Christmas Day represents the start of another festive period, up until epiphany or twelfth night on January 6. This is a celebration for the blessing of waters and the baptism of Jesus. December 28 is the Feast of the Holy Innocents, when a rather unusual method is used to ensure that children remain healthy: they get swished with birches. According the legend, every baby boy that King Herodes ordered to be killed while searching for the baby Jesus was a holy innocent.

Another custom connected to the period that comes after Christmas is “regölés” or “sending of good wishes”. It was basically a way to bring together people and collect donations from families in exchange for singing songs and wishing them good wishes. The blessing of wine would take place on December 27, the day of Saint John. Every family would take some wine to the church on this day in order for the priest to bless the drink, which was then believed to have magic powers. It was used to heal sick people and animals and some of it would be added to barrels in order to prevent the wine from going off.