"Rise Up Ye People Rejoice!" - Christmas Advent Story, Songs & Choirs

  

Grace and Peace to you this and Every Christmas Season...

 [updated December 11, 2020]

O Holy Night – Carols from King's 2017

(YouTube mix)

Advent- Waiting in Silence

Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols 2010 (Carols from King's)

(YouTube mix)

Hymnus VENI CREATOR SPIRITUS, Visione spartito, due versioni, SCHOLA

REGORIANA MEDIOLANENSIS, Dir. Giovanni Vianini, Milano, Italia

(YouTube mix)

Matthew 1

The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah

1 The [a]record of the genealogy of [b]Jesus the [c]Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

2 Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered [d]Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, and Hezron fathered [e]Ram. 4 Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon. 5 Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, and Obed fathered Jesse. 6 Jesse fathered David the king.

David fathered Solomon by [f]her who had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, and Abijah fathered [g]Asa. 8 Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered [h]Joram, and Joram fathered Uzziah. 9 Uzziah fathered [i]Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, and Ahaz fathered Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered [j]Amon, and Amon fathered Josiah. 11 Josiah fathered [k]Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

12 After the deportation to Babylon: Jeconiah fathered [l]Shealtiel, and Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel fathered [m]Abihud, Abihud fathered Eliakim, and Eliakim fathered Azor. 14 Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, and Achim fathered Eliud. 15 Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, and Matthan fathered Jacob. 16 Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the [n]Messiah.

17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the [o]Messiah, fourteen generations.

Conception and Birth of Jesus

18 Now the birth of Jesus the [p]Messiah was as follows: when His mother Mary had been [q]betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, since he was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her, planned to [r]send her away secretly. 20 But when he had thought this over, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for [s]the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a Son; and you shall name Him Jesus, for [t]He will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this [u]took place so that what was spoken by the Lord through [v]the prophet would be fulfilled: 23 “Behold, the virgin will [w]conceive and give birth to a Son, and they shall name Him [x]Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” 24 And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 [y]but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he named Him Jesus.

Rubens Adoration of the Magi (1609-1629) Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Matthew 2

The Visit of the Magi

1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, [a]magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, 2 “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the [b]Messiah was to be born. 5 They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written [c]by [d]the prophet:

6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,

Are by no means least among the leaders of Judah;

For from you will come forth a Ruler

Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”

7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi and determined from them the exact [e]time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” 9 After hearing the king, they went on their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on ahead of them until it came to a stop over the place where the Child was to be found. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And after they came into the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary; and they fell down and [f]worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And after being warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.

The Escape to Egypt

13 Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord *appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”

14 So [g]Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. 15 He [h]stayed there until the death of Herod; this happened so that what had been spoken by the Lord through [i]the prophet would be fulfilled: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

Herod Slaughters Babies

16 Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent men and killed all the boys who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity [j]who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. 17 Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,

Weeping and great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children;

And she refused to be comforted,

Because they were no more.”

19 But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord *appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, 20 “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” 21 So [k]Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, 23 and came and settled in a city called Nazareth. This happened so that what was spoken through the prophets would be fulfilled: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

Luke 1

Introduction

1 Since many have undertaken to compile an account of the things [a]accomplished among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning [b]were eyewitnesses and [c]servants of the [d]word, 3 it seemed fitting to me as well, having [e]investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in an orderly sequence, most excellent Theophilus; 4 so that you may know the exact truth about the [f]things you have been [g]taught.

John the Baptist’s Birth Foretold

5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of [h]Abijah; and he had a wife [i]from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. 7 And yet they had no child, because Elizabeth was infertile, and they were both advanced in [j]years.

8 Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering. 11 Now an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 Zechariah was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear [k]gripped him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall [l]name him John. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice over his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit [m]while still in his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. 17 And it is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of fathers back to their children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

18 Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in her [n]years.” 19 The angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who [o]stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time.”

21 And meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple, and he repeatedly [p]made signs to them, and remained speechless. 23 When the days of his priestly service were concluded, he went back home.

24 Now after these days his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and she kept herself [q]in seclusion for five months, saying, 25 “This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to take away my disgrace among people.”

Jesus’ Birth Foretold

26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin [r]betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the [s]descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was [t]Mary. 28 And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord [u]is with you.” 29 But she was very perplexed at this statement, and was pondering what kind of greeting this was. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” 34 But Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I [v]am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for that reason also the [w]holy Child will be called the Son of God. 36 And behold, even your relative Elizabeth herself has conceived a son in her old age, and [x]she who was called infertile is now in her sixth month. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, the Lord’s bond-servant; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 Now [y]at this time Mary set out and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And [z]how has it happened to me that the mother of my Lord would come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And blessed is she who [aa]believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her [ab]by the Lord.”

Christmas Worship Video: Magnificat Song of Mary

Mary’s Song: The Magnificat

46 And Mary said:

“My soul [ac]exalts the Lord,

47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

48 For He has had regard for the humble state of His bond-servant;

For behold, from now on all generations will [ad]call me blessed.

49 For the Mighty One has done great things for me;

And holy is His name.

50 And His mercy is to generation [ae]after generation

Toward those who fear Him.

51 He has done [af]mighty deeds with His arm;

He has scattered those who were proud in the [ag]thoughts of their hearts.

52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones,

And has exalted those who were humble.

53 He has filled the hungry with good things,

And sent the rich away empty-handed.

54 He has given help to His servant Israel,

[ah]In remembrance of His mercy,

55 Just as He spoke to our fathers,

To Abraham and his [ai]descendants forever.”

56 Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.

John the Baptist Is Born

57 Now the time [aj]had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had [ak]displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her.

59 And it happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to call him Zechariah, [al]after his father. 60 And yet his mother responded and said, “No indeed; but he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” 62 And they [am]made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called. 63 And he asked for a tablet and wrote [an]as follows, “His name is John.” And they were all amazed. 64 And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking in praise of God. 65 And fear came on all those who lived around them; and all these matters were being talked about in the entire hill country of Judea. 66 All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, “What then will this child turn out to be?” For indeed the hand of the Lord was with him.

Zechariah’s Prophecy

67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying:

68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,

For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,

69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us

In the house of His servant David—

70 Just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient times—

71 [ao]Salvation from our enemies,

And from the hand of all who hate us;

72 To show mercy to our fathers,

And to remember His holy covenant,

73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham,

74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,

Would serve Him without fear,

75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.

76 And you, child, also will be called the prophet of the Most High;

For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;

77 To give His people the knowledge of salvation

[ap]By the forgiveness of their sins,

78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,

With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,

79 To shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,

To guide our feet into the way of peace.”

80 Now the child grew and was becoming strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

Luke 2

Jesus’ Birth in Bethlehem

2 Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all [a]the inhabited earth. 2 [b]This was the first census taken while [c]Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all the people were on their way to register for the census, each to his own city. 4 Now Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, 5 in order to register along with Mary, who was [d]betrothed to him, and was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the [e]time came for her to give birth. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a [f]manger, because there was no [g]room for them in the inn.

8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock at night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. 10 And so the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is [h]Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a [i]manger.” 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly [j]army of angels praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace among people [k]with whom He is pleased.”

15 When the angels had departed from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem, then, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the [l]manger. 17 When they had seen Him, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. 18 And all who heard it were amazed about the things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

Jesus Presented at the Temple

21 And when eight days were completed [m]so that it was time for His circumcision, He was also named Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

22 And when the days for [n]their purification according to the Law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord: “Every firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”), 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what has been stated in the Law of the Lord: “A pair of turtledoves or two young doves.”

25 And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s [o]Christ. 27 And he came [p]by the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, [q]to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, 28 then he took Him in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

29 “Now, Lord, You are letting Your bond-servant depart in peace,

According to Your word;

30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation,

31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all the peoples:

32 A light for revelation [r]for the Gentiles,

And the glory of Your people Israel.”

33 And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to His mother Mary, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and [s]rise of many in Israel, and as a sign to be [t]opposed— 35 and a sword will pierce your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

36 And there was a prophetess, [u]Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in [v]years and had lived with her husband for seven years after her [w]marriage, 37 and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She did not leave the temple grounds, serving night and day with fasts and prayers. 38 And at that very [x]moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak about Him to all those who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

Return to Nazareth

39 And when His parents had completed everything in accordance with the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city of Nazareth. 40 Now the Child continued to grow and to become strong, [y]increasing in wisdom; and the favor of God was upon Him.

Visit to Jerusalem

41 His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when He was twelve years old, they went up there according to the custom of the feast; 43 and as they were returning, after spending the full number of days required, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but His parents were unaware of it. 44 Instead, they thought that He was somewhere in the caravan, and they went a day’s journey; and then they began looking for Him among their relatives and acquaintances. 45 And when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, looking for Him. 46 Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers. 48 When Joseph and Mary saw Him, they were bewildered; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You!” 49 And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s [z]house?” 50 And yet they on their part did not understand the statement which He had [aa]made to them. 51 And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them; and His mother treasured all these [ab]things in her heart.

52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and [ac]stature, and in favor with God and people.

Michelangelo's Pieta - Mary and Jesus Statue

Libera - Angel (performed live at Universal Studios Japan)

Celebrating Advent, It's Timeless Meaning and Discovery

 

 

People, even more than things, need to be restored, renewed, revived,
reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone. - Anon

 

 

Advent season begins each year on the fourth Sunday before December 25. By its name "advent" means coming and refers to Christ's first coming (or First Advent) as the baby Jesus beheld by the church as God in Incarnate Deity. Advent then progresses towards Lent and Easter where Jesus becomes man's atoning sacrifice for our sins and God's sealing promise of redemption to all repentant through His resurrection.

 

Jesus' Second Advent (known as His Second Coming) will be at a day and an hour that no man knows when He shall return to rule and reign to establish His Kingdom among men. Until that time we live within the tension of the already/not yet (known as the upside-down Kingdom) empowered by the Holy Spirit to testify of Christ Jesus' redemption by hearts and tongues, through deeds and acts, until He returns in final deliverance and completing redemptive promise.

As such, Advent is held during the Christmas season and is similar to a mnemonic practice placed into the Christian liturgy of annualized observance and worship. It began in the early church under the Church Fathers and has progressed into a rich tapestry of Christian interpretative religious practice found throughout the branches of Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Scandinavian, German, Dutch, Latino, Hispanic, and and American churches, to name but a few.

Accordingly, each Christian faith has appealed to the Christmas story of the Gospel of Jesus in some manner to appropriate some element of faith, or practice of belief, that has become meaningful to the journey of the follower of Christ by liturgical observance or confessional creed, by hallowed deed or truant prayer. Why? To reflect the deeper meaning of Christ's birth and the preparedness of the God's people Israel for His coming (as evidenced by John the Baptist's parents found in Luke 1) to the long-awaited divine event of salvation that led to Jesus' Cross of Atonement and the empowerment of the Church for ministry in place of His abstinence (Acts 1-3). Hence, on the Day of Pentecost, 50 days after Christ's resurrection, came God's Holy Spirit to empower the Church to bear witness to Jesus' life, passion, death and resurrection until He returns in His Second Advent to rule and to reign as King and Lord over a new heavens and new earth (Rev 1-18; specifically, Rev 19-22).

 

Until that time, the church is to minister to all men everywhere - to reclaim faith to the lost; to help in works of grace and salutation; to seek a living faith that is found in the substance of works and deeds and not simply on the lips of merciless hearts and faithless men; to refuse sinful temptations; to deny the idolatrous practices of fleshly worship (as found in the extremes of self-denial on the one hand, and the excesses of hedonism on the other); to bind the wounds of the heart and body; to care for the needs of the sick, the dying, the impoverished, and despised; to preach a gospel of love and good will, peace and assurance that are founded on the promises and testimonies of God in both the Old and New Testaments. These are but some of the ministries of the church until Christ returns again.

Into the rich traditions of the Church has come the integration of the Jewish-Christian calendars of observance to the liturgical practices and observations of Christian churches. But rather than refuse our Jewish brethren's desire to behold their Lord and Savior within their own Jewish Calendar year (which is unlike the Gentile/Julian Calendar (*sic the Roman calendar we use today) of Advent-Lent-Easter), the orthodox Church is learning to embrace and appreciate its earlier Jewish roots that may enliven previously set practices and traditions perhaps become historically mundane or exhausted. Originally, because of its nearness to both time and location of the Middle East, the early Church followed the Hebrew calendar until it grew beyond its Jewishness into the Gentile practices of the Romans and then worldwide.

To God, the Christian practice of faith is transcultural, transnational, and transtemporal.  That is, Christianity does not need to be centralized within one cultural distinctive or another. It was ever meant to be global. To be all, and one, and more, as the nations worshipped God with one another. That is, there is no religious advantage (or biblical advantage) of worshipping God as a Jew or as a Gentile where all are one in Christ Jesus. True, Judaism has the advantage of prior OT customs and traditions, but as we know from reading the OT, they were little observed and oftentimes were desecrated by Israel in continuing cycles of failure and judgment. As well, were the early Church customs initially based in Jewish traditions but over time leavened out within the customs and traditions of other lands and cultures. But the gospel of Jesus allows this. Jesus saw it coming when speaking of wineskins, mustard seeds, and mountains. That all would change in Him.

Thus, the church is at liberty to revision and repurpose its faith in Jesus through a variety of worship styles, liturgies, calendars, practices of austerity or non-austerity (such is found at Lent), and on and on. It may adapt previous pagan practices and customs by Christianizing them (as we do in America with the idea of Christmas; or the Druids did in England; or the Scandinavians did with their Norse Mythologies). Or the church may backfill Jewish traditions within its practices where it might make sense to the land and people (sic, perhaps mid-Eastern cultures, for instance). These adaptations are allowable according to the Apostle Paul who preached the freedom of faith observance everywhere. Or the church may use some combination of the above. But whether by Jesus or by Paul, the church was understood to be free to create - that there is no wrong way to worship God nor His blessings of redemption. That all is sanctified in Christ Jesus.

And so, with the idea of "more" in mind, we are free in Christ to set forth any kind of Christianized version that comes to our hearts and souls. Ideally, it would hearken back to Scriptural precedent... but in hindsight, the only precedent the early church had in the New Testament was that of its Jewish precursors. Consequently, just as new wine requires new wineskins, so the Gospel of Jesus is free to transform and develop into variant traditions and customs meaningful to the receiving people group. Be it Hispanic or Latino, Asian or Indonesian, South Pacific or Korean, Muslim and African, or even within polyglot nations like America. The Gospel is wide enough - and deep enough - to embrace all the customs and traditions of mankind.

It is but left to us to root those same customs and traditions into the understanding of God's grace and redemption, and not necessarily towards the Jewish customs of the time (for they too were ever rooted in the grace and redemption of the Almighty God of Heaven and Earth!). This is the freedom that the Gospel brings with it. That the faith of Jesus can be trans-national, trans-cultural, and even trans-temporal, by which is meant "from age-to-age ever the same but ever changing, transforming, renewing, and enlivening." ... Not surprisingly, the gospel of Jesus does that you know.

As such, we might chose topics of hope, peace, joy, and love as pictured in the Advent candles of Christmas-time by some faiths. Or, we might seek releasing forms of worship, prayer, assembly and enactment together as practiced by other faiths. Or, we might take aspects of Jesus' life that epitomize His grace, mercy, ministry and sacrifice. As can be seen, there are many ways to regard this season of Advent. It may be in the spirit of Christmas which observes the spirit of our Lord wrapped around gifts of generosity, thoughtfulness, good will, and humor with one another. Or through the simple symbols of Santa Claus, elves, reindeer, Christmas trees, bright and coloured lights, singing and charitable giving.

It is a powerful statement that Christ Jesus has touched all things human - from our holidays, to our community life, to our governance with one another. There is no such thing as either secular or sacred in Christ. In God all are one lest we become too religious for our own good, and that of the world around us, whom we as Christians of faith should be ministering to and reaching out to. To debate a Christianized form of Christmas by saying we observe only its Advent form is to make a finer distinction that seems to be unwarranted within the spirit of the gospel (and of the Bible itself as we've shown). And perhaps in the statement discover its only appeal is to that of our flesh, our religious pride, and spirit of human insolence (for isn't the base of sin man's pride of legalism and refusal of Jesus' atoning provision?).

Consequently, every church is free to imagine its own customs and traditions according to its corresponding beliefs in the bible and of God Himself. And it is to this point that we would all do well to appreciate all the customs and traditions of the church, and in doing so learn to appreciate from one another the global beauty of this time of year. Be it in the form of the spirit of Christmas or of that of the Church's Advent observance. Much can be gained when listening to one another. This is the beauty of the gospel. Herein in wisdom.

However, the rhymes and rhythms of this holiday season can never be more poignantly expressed than through the opening lines of this article. That, "People, even more than things, need to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone." When centering on Jesus we soon discover that He centers all things in our lives around the Story of His birth, life, witness, and sacrifice. That it becomes our larger story of faith relinquishing us from ourselves and from life's haughty demands. That the essence of Christ's First Advent is found in the ideas of restoration to God, renewal in God, revival through God, reclamation by God, and redemption because of God. In all things is God our Redeemer. Our Savior. Our Immanuel come to bring eternal life that begins in our here-and-now. Not later. But today. Reveal in Christ's birth. It was for this reason He came.

 

And because Advent is a time of restoration, renewal, revival, reclamation, and redemption, we now know that it's time has come to us today. Not simply during the Advent season of Christmas, nor that of Lent and Easter, but each and every day of our living faith. This is the great, good joy of our Christian celebration. It is Jesus who is our own advent, epiphany, second coming, and Lord. No wonder the angels sang, and the shepherds rang out the bells on Christmas morn to one and all.

Ring out the Bells!
Ring out the Bells!
Let them Peal,
To One and All!
Sing Out in Hail,
Sing Out in Fellowship!
In Wonder and Awe,
In Beauty and Grace!
The Christ Child Comes,
Christ Comes this Day!

 ...And He has Come to the Heart of every man and woman and child in the swaddling cloths of divine humility and glorified grace. May God's peace be with you this day, as on every advent day of this coming new year. Amen.

 

R.E. Slater

December 3, 2012

 

Advent Poems for Christmas

http://reslater.blogspot.com/2012/12/advent-poems-for-christmas.html

(click to enlarge any picture)

 

 

 

Sampling Advent Customs & Traditions

 

The Christian Liturgical Calendar - Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Eastern Christians, and traditional Protestant communities frame worship around a liturgical calendar. This includes holy days, such as solemnities which commemorate an event in the life of Jesus or the saints, periods of fasting such as Lent, and other pious events such as memoria or lesser festivals commemorating saints. Christian groups that do not follow a liturgical tradition often retain certain celebrations, such as Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. A few churches make no use of a liturgical calendar. - Wikipedia

 

Advent - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advent

Advent's Origins - http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles6/ReardonAdvent.php

Catholoic Observance of Advent - http://www.catholic.org/clife/advent/advent.php?id=5

Catholic Understanding of Advent - http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01165a.htm

Eastern Orthodoxy Liturgical Calendar - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodox_liturgical_calendar

Antiochian (Eastern) Orthodoxy Customs - http://www.antiochian.org/1132082814

Greek Orthodoxy Calendar - http://www.goarch.org/chapel/calendar/

Greek Orthodoxy Customs - http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/adx/advfood.html

Lutheran Observance of Advent - https://www.elca.org/Growing-In-Faith/Worship/Planning/Advent.aspx

German Observance of Advent - http://www.german-way.com/christmasAdv.html

Hispanic Traditions - http://www.hispanic-culture-online.com/hispanic-christmas-traditions.html#axzz2E00ACree

Reformed Church of America - https://www.rca.org/advent

Christian Reformed Advent Devotionals - http://www.crcna.org/pages/osj_adventdevotions.cfm

The Hebrew Calendar - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_calendar

Jewish Calendar (complete) - http://www.hebcal.com/holidays/2012-2013

Jewish Holidays - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_holiday

Jewish Holidays - http://urj.org/holidays/jcal/

Jewish Holidays Cheat Sheet (to understanding all things Jewish) - http://www.interfaithfamily.com/holidays/other_holidays/Jewish_Holidays_Cheat_Sheet.shtml

Comparison of Church Liturgical Calendars

Western
Advent Christmastide Ordinary Time Septuagesima/Pre-Lent/Shrovetide Lent Holy Week Paschal Triduum Eastertide Ordinary Time
Eastern
Nativity Fast Christmastide (Ordinary Time) Septuagesima/Pre-Great Lent Great Lent Eastertide Apostles' Fast (Ordinary Time)

The Jewish Calendar

Holiday	Hebrew Yr 5773	Description
Rosh Hashana	Sep 17-18, 2012	The Jewish New Year
Yom Kippur	Sep 26, 2012	Day of Atonement
Sukkot	Oct 1-2, 2012 Oct 3-7, 2012	Feast of Tabernacles
Shmini Atzeret	Oct 8, 2012	Eighth Day of Assembly
Simchat Torah	Oct 9, 2012	Day of Celebrating the Torah
Chanukah	Dec 9-16, 2012	The Jewish festival of rededication, also known as the Festival of Lights
Purim	Feb 24, 2013	Purim is one of the most joyous and fun holidays on the Jewish calendar
Pesach	Mar 26-27, 2013 Mar 28-31, 2013 Apr 1-2, 2013	Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread
Shavuot	May 15-16, 2013	Festival of Weeks, commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai
Tish'a B'Av	Jul 16, 2013	The Ninth of Av, fast commemorating the destruction of the two Temples

The Origins of Advent

(An Antiochian View of Advent)
http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles6/ReardonAdvent.php

 

Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon

 

In the Roman Catholic Church and other Christian churches of the West, the several weeks prior to Christmas are known as Advent, a name from a Latin word meaning "coming." It happens that the beginning of Advent always falls on the Sunday closest to November 30, the ancient feast day (in both East and West) of the Apostle Andrew. Among Christians in the West, this preparatory season, which tends to be slightly less rigorous than Lent and often involves no special fasting at all, always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. Thus, from year to year it will vary in length between 3 and 4 weeks, but always with four Sundays.

 

The observance of the season of Advent is fairly late. One finds no sermons for Advent, for instance, among the liturgical homilies of St. Leo the Great in the mid-fifth century. About that time, however, the season was already emerging in Spain and Gaul. A thousand years later, the time of the Reformation, Advent was preserved among the liturgical customs of the Anglicans and Lutherans; in more recent years, other Protestant groups have informally begun to restore it, pretty much as it had originally started--one congregation at a time.

 

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the corresponding penitential season of preparation for Christmas always begins on November 15, the day after the Feast of the Apostle Philip. For this reason it is popularly known as St. Philip's Fast. A simple count of the days between November 15 and December 25 shows that this special period lasts exactly 40 days, the same as Lent.

 

More recently Christians of the Orthodox Church have begun to call this season by its Latin name, "Advent." One now finds the term standard in publications of the Antiochian Archdiocese, for instance. The adoption of the word "Advent" by Eastern Orthodox Christians is inspired by the same reason that prompted the adoption of other Latin theological terms, such "Sacraments," "Incarnation," and "Trinity." Very simply, these are the recognizable theological terms that have passed into Western languages. They also happen to be theologically accurate! If the Christian West can adopt Greek terms like "Christology," it seems only fair for the Christian East to adopt Latin terms like "Incarnation."

 

(On the other hand, one finds some Orthodox Christians, especially among recent, hyperactive converts from Western churches, who resist the adoption of the word "Advent," preferring to speak of "Winter Lent" or some such anomaly. One is hard pressed to explain this eccentric, lamentable preference for Anglo-Saxon over Latin on a point of theology.)

 

Several other features of Advent deserve some comment:

• First, in the West the First Sunday of Advent is treated as the beginning of the liturgical year. (In the East, the liturgical year does not begin with Advent but on September 1, which bears the traditional title, "Crown of the Year." Its historical relationship to the Jewish feast of Rosh Hashana is obvious.)
 
• Second, during the twentieth century there arose the lovely custom of the Advent wreath, both in church buildings and in homes. This wreath lies horizontal and is adorned with four candles. The latter, (symbolic of the four millennia covered in Old Testament history), are lit, one at a time, on each Saturday evening preceding the four Sundays of Advent, by way of marking the stages in the season until Christmas. This modern practice has already started in some Orthodox Christian homes, where the longer season requires six candles on the Advent wreath.
 
• Third, because of its emphasis on repentance, Advent is a season of great seriousness, not a time proper for festivity, much less of partying and secular concerns. Advent is not part of the Christmas holidays, and Christians of earlier times would be shocked at the current habit of treating this as a period of jolly good times and "Christmas cheer," complete with office parties, the trimming of Christmas trees and other domestic adornments, the exchange of gifts, caroling, and even the singing of Christmas music in church.

 

All of these festive things are part of the celebration of Christmas itself, which lasts the 12 days from December 25 to January 6.

 

The seasons of the liturgical year involve more than liturgical services. The liturgical seasons is supposed to govern the lives of those who observe them. For this reason, anticipating these properly Christmas activities during Advent considerably lessens the chance of our being properly prepared, by repentance, for the grace of that greater season; it also heightens the likelihood that we will fall prey to the worldly spirit that the commercial world would encourage during this time.

Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and a Senior Editor of Touchstone: A Journal of Mere Christianity.


 

Merry Christmas from Sweden!

Yogi Yorgesson Yingle Bells

More Links to Yogi Yorgesson at YouTube.com

I have a Swedish inheritance that I do not remember much of except for its bits and pieces strung together and lost to the ravages of time in my failing memory of its lore and traditions. A few years ago, my folks visited my grandmother's relatives in Sweden (apparently we have a lot of family members in the Stockholm area) and told us again how our great-grandparents came to America as young men and women. As talented craftsmen, after years of dreaming and building, they were able to realize the Johnson & Johnson Furniture Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which they managed from 1908 to 1963. I was eight when the company was sold, and lived on a distant farm disconnected with my mom's rich past, but can still remember the touch of a good piece of wood shaped and lacquered under my little hands, as they swam over Johnson furniture pieces feeling the run of the grain underneath.

One of the things I remember are Grandma and Grandpa Johnson's great love for Christmas and the fun they would have on Christmas Eve where they hosted a large, and happy, family party for all their grand kids. After punch, eats, treats, and dinner, it began with a recital of the Christmas Advent and the lighting of candles (they were Lutheran) and ended with a rowdy rendition of "Yingle Bells" which we all greatly loved to sing very loud and very off-key.

Then, beneath the handcrafted ornaments that we had made from the weekend before (mostly from whatnot - sponges, cardboard, string, tinsel, and glitter spray) entered grandpa to his "Ho, Ho, Ho's" bearing a large bag of presents on his back. He was a kind of stringy fellow with great, good humor, but the red suit and fake white whiskers hid him well enough as his eyes dashed and glinted at the commotion he caused while we danced and pranced around his jolly figure (oftentimes too jolly because the uncles by then had started their own earlier celebration).

We excitedly welcomed Santa and patiently waited each one of us for our paper-wrapped gift or two which we opened with little care to the bows or wrappings, and then shared with one another our games, trucks, dolls, and toys. Those were fun memories that wander my mind and soul each Christmas Eve as I remember the long drive home along the river bed gazing through the trees that ran beside us into the cold starry sky above. Looking for Santa streaking across the winter airs to our home far ahead on a snowy night that was too hard to sleep until wearily we did in nodding repose under thick comforters mom lovingly had fashioned from needle and thread.

Then wake to dad's excited exclamations and his folks loudly jingling sleigh bells underneath our bedroom windows as they trundled through the snow from their ancient farmhouse next door in the early morning dark. Excitedly padding down the long wooden hallway my brothers and I toppled into a living room filled with the love and joy of Christmas we remember each year with one another even now with our own families as we celebrate Christ's good birth, and goodwill, to one and all.

To honor this grand family heritage I thought it might be fun to put together a variety of web links related to Old World Swedish Christmas customs and traditions in remembrance of this time of year (if there are better web links please let me know!). And, as they say in Swedish, "God Jul!" which means in Swedish - and spoke with a twinkle in the eye and a bit of mischievousness added - "Merry Christmas" to one and all this happy season of good tidings!

R.E. Slater

December 12, 2011
update January 9, 2014; December 10, 2016

Swedish christmas - Astrid Lindgren tributevideo:

Barnen i bullerbyn

Christmas through the generations:

"When adults look to their youth,

and youth to the stars ahead."

Just a little X-mas video I put together for you all. One more time I've used clips from one of  Astrid Lindgren's masterpiece. This time it's "The children in Bullerby village." I wanted to show what a traditional Swedish Christmas could look like. It's the best in the world! The song is sung by a Swedish group, Bubbles. Hope you enjoy the video and have a wonderful Christmas!

A Swedish Christmas Poem

My Grandmother wrote this poem about those Christmas celebrations in the "Old Country" If not for the discussion on Christmas traditions I would not have gotten to revisit her words. Thank you for letting me share.

Diane Johnson

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~hindorff/christmas1.htm

Jul-Tide Pilgrimage

In fancy, I go to the Northland,
At Christmas time long, long ago,
When my Mom was a small girl in Sweden
And forests were laden with snow.

She helped choose the spruce on the hillside -
The prettiest one to be found;
Granddad felled it and loaded the stoneboat
With small folk and tree, homeward bound.

Red lingon have long since been gathered
For jam as a holiday treat;
They grow in the moss-covered marshes,

Come hither to fill their wood buckets
And thrill to the cuckoo's call,
That chimies from the top of a pine tree -
A peace and good will song to all!

The candles are moulded from tallow,
Good Julbread and fruit soup is made;
Round cheeses, stuffed sausage and lutfisk,
Will humble festivity aid.

Preparedness is now in full motion,
The floor is sand-scrubbed and looks white,
With a door mat of evergreen branches -
Some on stove for incense delight.

This Christmas is full of surprises,
Red apples now sway in the tree;
Dear presents - so graciously home-made,
And eyes that are starfilled, I see.

It's Christmas Eve! In this lowly dwelling
The true Jul-tide Spirit abides,
The head of the house reads the Story -
The love of the Christ Child presides.

At dawn, on their brisk walk to God's House,
Groups carol the long six-mile way -
Thus honor the Babe with their presence
And worship on this Blessed Day.

May you, too, have a heart-warming Christmas,
Find you in each good thing God lends
And thrill as each candle-light hallows
The Gift that His Love to you sends.


by Phoebe Carolina Swanson Johnson
December 1962
Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Swedish Sled with Gifts

  

A few Swedish links

Christmas in Sweden

Traditions around Christmas

The Christmas Goat in Gavle, Sweden

Ulla-Janes Jul-hörna dish!

My Christmas Page

Have a Swedish Christmas

http://thesoriamoria.com/2013/11/scandinavian-christmas-soria-moria/

http://www.scandinavianchristmastraditions.com/christmas-in-sweden.html

Celebrating Christmas Yule in Scandinavia

Christmas Markets in Scandinavia

Christmas in Sweden

Christmas in Sweden, more than any other holiday, is the time for sentiment and joy. Stored feelings come out in the open and the freedom to express what is in the heart is joyously embraced.

There is no need to fear being considered emotional or sentimental, because everyone is prompted by the same feelings.

This release of emotions makes for a warmer companionship, and at no other time of year are there such gratifying attachments formed as at Christmas. Formality is put on the shelf – and Swedish formality can be strong – letting the Christmas spirit take over.

To the children the anticipation is almost unbearable. They count the days – the day before the day, before the day . . . – until at last the day itself arrives, Christmas Eve.

That is the day of climax in Sweden as in the rest of Scandinavia, not Christmas Day. Weeks of scrubbing, weeks of baking, weeks of cooking terminate with this day. The house smells Christmas!

The Christmas tree is brought inside and with it fresh air and the fresh scent of pine. The children flock around father as he puts the star at the top of the tree and mother searches through boxes for the familiar trimmings and ornaments. Garlands of small Swedish blue and yellow flags are common, and if the family has relatives in other countries such as the United States there will be garlands of small flags from those countries too.

The Swedish Dopp I gryta must for all practical reasons be enjoyed in the kitchen. Serving the meal buffet style facilitates the ceremonial procedure in front of the stove where members of the household now gather to dip their bread in the pot or gryta, that is, in the hot broth.

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Saying Merry Christmas in Swedish: God Jul

In this collection you will find over 300 holiday postcard images to bring Sweden’s Christmas traditions to life.

The charm, warmth, and beauty of a Swedish Christmas is captured in this remarkable collection of 300 colorful, fun, and historic postcards dating back to the 1800s.

Each postcard reveals the magic behind Christmas, Scandinavian tradition and folklore.

Here, the tomte/nisse meets Santa and children play with angels.

With traditional postcards from renowned artists such as Jenny Nystrom, Elsa Beeskow, and Aina Stenberg, accompanied by explanations of the cultural and historical past, God Jul will make everyone that is even a little bit Swedish homesick for an Old World Christmas.

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From a very old christmas story comes this description of Christmas in Sweden:

In Sweden there is a general house-cleaning before Christmas; everything must be polished, scrubbed, beaten, and made clean, and all rubbish burned, for dirt, like sinful thoughts, cannot be tolerated during the holy festival.

Christmas in Sweden - preparations

As early as the first of December each housewife starts her preparations for the great day. Many have worked all the year making gifts for the occasion, but now the carpets must come up and be beaten, the paint must be cleaned, and the house set in order.

Above is an album of Swedish singing of Christmas favorites, the now world famous Peter Mattei is featured along with choral singing of the first rank. You will be pleased to hear it!

The silver which has been handed down from generation to generation, together with that received on holidays and birthdays, has to be cleaned and polished, so must the brasses-the tall fire-dogs, the stately andirons, and the great kettles-all must be made to reflect every changing ray of light.

Christmas in Sweden - baking

Then the baking for a well-ordered household is a matter of great moment, and requires ample time. It is usual to begin at least two weeks before Christmas. Bread is made of wheat and rye flour, raised over night, then rolled very thin and cut into discs twelve or fourteen inches in diameter, with a hole in the center.

After having been baked, these are strung on a stick and left to dry under the beams of the baking-room. As they will keep a long while, large quantities are made at this season in each household. Then follows the making of sweetened, soft, rye, wheat, and other breads, as well as the baking of the light yellow (saffron), the chocolate-brown, and thin gray-colored cakes, and those that are filled with custard.

Christmas in Sweden - Christmas Drinks

The preparing of Christmas drinks always requires the close attention of good dames, for there must be an inexhaustible supply of Christmas beer, made of malt, water, molasses, and yeast, and wine with almonds and spices, and various other decorations.

Then the cheese must be made ready, not only the usual sour kind, but the more delicious sweet cheese that is made of sweet milk boiled slowly for hours and prettily moulded. The Swedish wife is relieved of the burden of making pies, as her people know nothing about that indigestible mixture so acceptable to American palates.

Christmas in Sweden - the Christmas Tree

The festivities begin with the dressing of the tree the day before Christmas. In this the older members of the family, with friends and relatives, join with great gusto, preparing paper flowers with which to bedeck the tall evergreen tree which reaches from floor to ceiling. They cut long ribbons of colored paper for streamers, and make yards of paper fringe to wind with the tinsel among the boughs, from which are hung bright colored boxes of sweetmeats, fruit, and fancy balls.

The children are, of course, excluded from the room and obliged to content themselves with repeating the tales of Santa Claus, (Christmas in Sweden is connected with "Tomten", the Swedish version of Santa Claus) as told by their elders. When a gift is offered in person, or, as is more generally the case, is thrown in the door suddenly by an unseen hand, there rings a merry Glad Frill (God Jul = Good Yule) meaning "Merry Christmas," for that is the wish of the preceding day or days, rather than of Christmas itself.

Christmas in Sweden - Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve at early nightfall, when the colored candles are ablaze over the entire tree, and the great red ball of light shines from its topmost branches, the children are admitted to the room amidst a babel of shouts and screams of delight, which are increased upon the arrival of a veritable Santa Claus bestrewn with wool-snow and laden with baskets of gifts.

On the huge sled are one or more baskets according to the number of bundles to be distributed in the family. Each bundle bears the name of the owner on its wrapper, together with funny rhymes and mottoes, which are read aloud for the amusement of all. Santa Claus always gives an abundance of valuable counsel and advice to the young folks as he bestows upon them his pretty gifts.

After the distribution of gifts and the disappearance of Santa Claus, all join in dancing and singing around the tree simple, childish jingles such as the following: "Now is Christmas here again, Now is Christmas here again, After Christmas then comes Easter, Cheese and bread and Christmas beer, Fish and rice and Christmas cheer! -etc."

One of the prettiest dances is that of "Cutting the Oats," in which girls and boys-there must be an extra boy-dance in a circle, singing: "Cut the oats, cut the oats, Who is going to bind them? That my dearest will have to do, But where will I find him? "I saw him last eve in the moonlight, In the moonlight clear and bright, So you take one and I'll take one, And he will be left without one."

The boys represent the cutters and the girls the oats, and great merriment prevails as the cutters' arms encircle the waists of the pretty oats, leaving the unfortunate cutter, whom they all dance around, bowing scoffingly as they shout: "No one did want you, Poor sprite, no one wants you, You are left alone, You are left alone." Many of their games are similar to "Blind Man's Buff," "Hunt the Key," and "Hot and Cold," or "Hunt to the Music," the latter being one which by its modulations from pianissimo to forte indicate the hunters' nearness to the object sought for.

The game of "Blind Feeding the Blind" causes much amusement among the juveniles; two players sit opposite each other blindfolded and endeavor to feed one another with spoonfuls of milk, and their mishaps are very entertaining to the on-lookers. Christmas in Sweden: Between the hours of ten and eleven comes the grand Christmas supper, when all adjourn to the dining-room to partake of the annual feast for which the housewives have long been preparing.

The table is usually tastefully and often elaborately trimmed with flowers and green leaves. The corners of the long snow-white homespun cloth are caught up into rosettes surrounded with long calla or other leaves; possibly the entire edge of the table is bedecked with leaves and flowers.

The butter is moulded into a huge yellow rose resting on bright green leaves, and the napkins assume marvelous forms under the deft fingers of the artistic housewives.

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Christmas in Sweden - Swedish Christmas Traditions

Amazon link here

Christmas in Sweden evokes fond memories of delicious homemade breads and pastries, simple and beautiful wreaths and ornaments, and handmade crafts fashioned by the fire on a snowy day.

Here readers will learn how to bring those warm traditions into their own homes, wherever they live.

Included are instructions to make mulled wine, homemade peanut brittle, red candied apples, crisp pepparkakor, lightly browned Swedish meatballs, candles, wreaths, and more.

Each recipe and project are accompanied by beautiful full-color photographs.

From fashioning centerpieces to baking delicious cookies to hand-making Christmas tree ornaments, this book will inspire readers to rediscover the joys of a Scandinavian Christmas.

The Christmas mush (rice porridge) holds the first place in importance among the choice viands of the occasion; it is rice boiled a long while in milk and seasoned with salt, cinnamon, and sugar, and is eaten with cream. Several blanched almonds are boiled in the mush and it is confidently believed that whoever finds the first almond will be the first to be married.

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Christmas in Sweden - Customs

While eating it, each one is expected to make rhymes about the rice and the good luck it is to bring them, and the most remarkable poetical effusions are in order on these occasions.

The Christmas fish is to the Swede what the Christmas roast-beef is to the Englishman, an indispensable adjunct of the festival. The fish used resembles a cod; it is buried for days in wood ashes or else it is soaked in soda water, then boiled and served with milk gravy.

Bread, cheese, and a few vegetables follow, together with a pudding made of salt herrings, skinned, boned, and cut in thin slices, which are laid in a dish with slices of cold boiled potatoes and hard-boiled eggs, covered with a dressing of cream, butter, and eggs-then baked and served hot.

The fish, rice, and a fat goose are said to be served at every table on Christmas from that of the king to that of the commonest of his subjects.

Christmas in Sweden - Christmas Morning

Christmas morning opens with an early service in church, to which the older members of the family go in sled parties of from forty to fifty sleds, each drawn by one, two, or even three horses, over whose backs jingle rows of silver-toned bells.

The sled parties are a special feature of Christmas in Sweden. They start out while the stars are still twinkling in the sky, and the lighted trees are illuminating the homes they pass.

The day itself is observed with less hilarity than other days during the season; the "Second Christmas Day" or day following, being far gayer. Then begin the family parties, with the looking forward to the great Twelfth-Night ball, after which the children and young folks end their evening parties by untrimming the tree of their entertainer amidst peals of laughter, songs, and shouts.

The tree, of course, has been supplied anew with candles, fruit, and candy. The first are blown out and the last two struggled for while the tree is drawn slowly toward the door out of which it is finally pitched by the merry crowd.

Christmas in Sweden - Official Holidays

The Swedes have four legal holidays at Yule, beginning the day previous to Christmas, and they make merry while they last. Besides having the Jul-gran or Christmas tree, each family places in the yard a pole with a sheaf of grain on top for the birds' Christmas dinner, a pretty custom of Christmas in Sweden and common to many other countries.

Business is very generally suspended during Christmas in Sweden, the day following, Twelfth Day, and the twentieth day. "Do as your forefathers have done, and you can't do wrong," is said to be the motto of the Swedes.

So the customs of their forefathers are strictly observed at Yule-tide - Christmas in Sweden. Svea, the feminine name of Sweden, the "Queen of the North," contains what is popularly believed to be the burial-places of Wodin, Thor, and Freya.

The mounds are about one mile from Upsala and are visited by travelers from all parts of the world. Antiquarian researchers, however, have recently had a word to say in doubt whether these mounds contain the remains of the renowned beings, those ancient travelers.

The Swedes, however, still cling to the belief that the bones of Wodin, the Alexander of the North, rest beneath the sod at Upsala. In these mounds have been found the bones of a woman and of a dog, a bracelet of filigree work, and a curious pin shaped like a bird, but no sign of Wodin's presence.

Yet peasants believe that Wodin passes by on dark nights, and his horse's shoe, with eight nail-holes, is exhibited in the museum at Utwagustorp.

New Year's Day is of comparatively little importance; the Christmas trees are usually relighted for the enjoyment of the poorer children and gifts are made to the needy. The Yule festivities are prolonged for two weeks in many places, during which the people visit from home to home and enjoy many social pleasures.

The devout attend church services each day, abandon all work so far as possible, and on January thirteenth generally finish up the joyous season with a ball.

A folk tale depiction of Father Christmas riding on a goat.

The Yule goat is a Scandinavian and Northern European Yule and Christmas symbol and tradition. Its origin may be Germanic pagan, and has existed in many variants during Scandinavian history. Modern representations of the Yule goat are typically made of straw. The custom of wassailing is sometimes called "going Yule goat" in Scandinavia.

Link - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_Goat

The Swedish Gävle goat in 2006

The Gävle Goat (Gävlebocken) is a traditional Christmas display erected annually at Slottstorget ("Castle Square") in central Gävle. It is a giant version of a traditional Swedish Yule Goat figure made of straw, and is erected each year at the beginning of Advent over a period of two days by local community groups. It is notable for being a recurring target for vandalism by arson, and has been destroyed several times since the first goat was erected in 1966.

Link - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%A4vle_goat

From Wikipedia

Swedish Christmas celebrations begin with the first of Advent. Saint Lucy's Day (locally known as Luciadagen) which is the first major Christmas celebration before Christmas itself. Electric candles and glowing stars are placed in almost every window in December month in Sweden. Although December 25 (juldagen) is a Swedish public holiday, December 24 is the day when the Jultomte (or simply Tomte) brings the presents. Although not a public holiday, Christmas Eve is a de facto holiday in the sense that most workplaces are closed, and those who work, for instance in shops or care homes, get extra wages as a compensation. (See also: Public holidays in Sweden for further explanation of this concept.)

Scandinavian folklore

The Jultomte was originally a small invisible Christmas house gnome or dwarf from the Nordic mythology, who watched over the house and its inhabitants. An old superstition still calls for feeding the Tomte on Christmas Eve with a small bowl of porridge. If a bowl of porridge is not laid out for him somewhere in or outside the house, he will bring bad luck to everyone in the house the next year. The modern "Tomten", nowadays is a version of Santa Claus in red cloth and white beard, except that he doesn't enter the house through the chimney, but knocks on the door and asks "finns det några snälla barn här?" ("are there any nice children here?")

In the 1840s, an elf in Nordic folklore called "Tomte" or "Nisse" started to deliver the Christmas presents in Denmark. The Tomte was portrayed as a short, bearded man dressed in gray clothes and a red hat. This new version of the age-old folkloric creature was obviously inspired by the Santa Claus traditions that were now spreading to Scandinavia. By the end of the 19th century this tradition had also spread to Norway and Sweden, replacing the Yule Goat. The same thing happened in Finland, but there the more human figure retained the Yule Goat name. But even though the tradition of the Yule Goat as a bringer of presents is now all but extinct, a straw goat is still a common Christmas decoration in all of Scandinavia.

Christmas tree in Stockholm, Sweden

Swedish Customs

Christmas is, as everywhere else, an occasion celebrated with food. Almost all Swedish families celebrate on 24 December with a Christmas table, called Christmas smörgåsbord (julbord), a display of several Christmas food items. Almost all julbord has Christmas ham, (julskinka) accompanied by other Christmas dishes, such as small meatballs, pickled herring, spareribs, small hot dogs, lutfisk, pork sausage, salmon, Janssons frestelse (potato casserole with anchovy), and rice pudding. The Christmas julbord is served with julmust and beverage like mulled wine, Christmas beer or snaps. A Scandinavian speciality is the glögg (mulled and spiced wine with almonds and raisins), which is served hot in small cups. The different dishes of the julbord may vary throughout Sweden, from South to North. Businesses traditionally invite their employees to a julbord dinner or lunch the weeks before Christmas, and people go out privately to restaurants which also customarily offer julbord during December.

Examples of candies and treats associated with Christmas are marzipan, toffee, knäck (quite similar to butterscotch), nuts and fruits: figs, chocolate, dates and oranges decorated with cloves.

Television also plays a big role, many families watch the Disney Christmas special Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul (From All of Us to All of You), Karl Bertil Jonssons julafton (animated short), or a re-run of the Svensson, Svensson episode God Jul! (Merry Christmas) on the TV channel SVT1.^[25]

Julbock, a giant Christmas goat at the Gävle town market, Sweden

After the julbord on December 24, the presents are distributed, either by Jultomten or a family member, and usually from a sack or from under the Christmas tree where they have been lying all day or for several days. Many Swedes still adhere to the tradition that each present should have a rhyme written on the wrapping paper, to hint at the contents without revealing them.^[26] In older days a yule goat was an alternative to Jultomten, nowadays it is used as an ornament, ranging from sizes of 10 cm to huge constructions like the giant straw Christmas Gävle goat, famous for frequently being vandalised or burnt down. If one has two families to celebrate Christmas with, it is common that one of the families move their celebrations to Christmas Day or the day before Christmas Eve (commonly referred to as little Christmas Eve).

Stor bonad - Slädparti från julottan, 1940 tals-motiv

After December 24, the Christmas celebrations have more or less come to an end. Some people attend the julottan, an early morning church service on December 25. This particular service was the main service of Christmas historically—nowadays, the Midnight Mass has become increasingly popular. Others attend a simpler service called Christmas Prayer in the afternoon of Christmas Eve; however, many Swedes do not attend church at all during Christmas as the country is very secular. Even so, most families do set up a Julkrubba (Christmas Crib). On January 13 (locally known as knutdagen or tjugondag knut, English = twentieth day Christmas), 20 days after Christmas, the Christmas celebrations come to an end and all Christmas decorations are removed.

Swedish Angel Chimes

Swedish julkrubba nativity with candles

The Christmas Story Worldwide

From Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas

Sinterklaas or Saint Nicholas, considered by
 many to be the original Santa Claus.

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ,^[5][6] celebrated generally on December 25^[2][3][4] as a religious and cultural holiday by billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates the twelve days of Christmastide.^[7] Christmas is a civil holiday in many of the world's nations,^[8][9][10] is celebrated by an increasing number of non-Christians,^[1][11][12] and is an integral part of the Christmas and holiday season.

The precise day of Jesus’ birth, which historians place between 7 and 2 BC, is unknown.^[13] In the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church first placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted also in the East.^[14][15] Theories advanced to explain that choice include that it falls exactly nine months after the Christian celebration of the conception of Jesus,^[16] or that it was selected to coincide with either the date of the Roman winter solstice^[17] or of some ancient winter festival.^[16][18]

The original date of the celebration in Eastern Christianity was January 6, in connection with Epiphany, and that is still the date of the celebration for the Armenian Apostolic Church and in Armenia, where it is a public holiday. As of 2011, there is a difference of 13 days between the Julian calendar and the more generally used Gregorian calendar. Those who use the Julian calendar or its equivalents thus celebrate December 25 and January 6 on what for the majority of people is January 7 and January 19. For this reason, Ethiopia celebrates Christmas, both as a Christian feast and as a public holiday on what in the Gregorian calendar is January 7.^[19]

Many of the popular celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas have pre-Christian or secular themes and origins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift-giving, music, an exchange of Christmas cards, church celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various decorations; including Christmas trees, lights, garlands, mistletoe, nativity scenes, and holly. In addition, several figures, known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, and Santa Claus, among other names, are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season.^[20] Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few centuries in many regions of the world.

Swedish Christmas

(Swedish Christmas Advent songs and traditions)

Trailer for a new app and DVD with Swedish Christmas songs and traditions.

More apps - visit http://www.traditionalsweden.com/swedish-christmas-app.

How to do a really Swedish Christmas

http://www.nordicway.com/search/Sweden/Sweden_Christmas%20traditions.htm

(this link is no longer operative)

Christmas is very special to Swedes plain and simply because a Swedish Christmas is very special. Many people who do not have any Swedish roots have also adopted some of the picturesque customs that have been globalized by IKEA, Ingmar Bergman’s “Fanny and Alexander” and Swedish generally by Christmas enthusiasts spread around the world.

The real enjoyment of a Swedish Christmas is in the preparations. The “getting there” should be just as joyful as the real thing. This is important because many an ambitious housewife is too exhausted to enjoy the actual festivities.

The Christmas stress is fuelled by “countdowns” in the form of the Advent Candles and the Advents Calendar that provide for a reminder that Christmas is fast approaching.

The advent candle custom came to Sweden from Germany as late as in the 1920s. Any holder for four candles will do, and you can fill it with moss and small toadstools. You can also improvise with four separate candlesticks. Light one candle on the First of Advent, the first Sunday in December or at times the last Sunday in November. Let it burn down a little and then light it again on the second Advent together with the second candle and so on.

In Sweden you can also buy tall candles with 24 pre-printed dates. You can make your own with a marker pen.

The first widespread advents calendars evolved from the 24 gingerbread cookies with numbers made of melted sugar that Gerhard Lang got from his mother. When he grew up and became a printer, he adapted the idea to make decorative printed advents calendars in 1903. Today most children in Sweden get a Swedish Television calendar that is based on a serialized story that they can follow as they open each window.

In North America you can buy the chocolate calendars that are popular in Sweden too. Many families make special advents calendars of their own with a small gift or a message for each day. You can hang 24 small dated packages with everything from chewing gum or stickers against a colourful backdrop or make a little chest with 24 drawers out of small matchboxes.

General Christmas preparations can be divided into three categories - decorations, gifts, and food and entertaining. And tucked somewhere in there is the compulsory thorough cleaning of the house including changing curtains and draperies.

Colourful Christmas lights are quite a late development in Sweden where white lights still dominate as an outdoors Christmas decoration. The origin of this may well be the advent Christmas tree that the Swedish church introduced around the same time as the Christmas tree was introduced in Sweden in the late 19th century. Each advent the church lit seven candles in the advent tree so that in the end there were 28 burning candles in the pine or juniper tree. Between Sundays the tree was placed outdoors in the snow without any decoration other than the candles and this is probably the inspiration for the way Swedes do their decorating outdoors.

Door decorations are a relatively young feature in Sweden where it has traditionally been customary to decorate windows with candles, hyacinths and home-made decorations. In the 1940s the founder of H&M, Erling Persson made a small fortune getting Swedes to hang an electrically lit paper star lantern in their windows. Nowadays the most popular window decoration is an electric 7-candle candelabra that you can buy at Swedish gift stores or at Ikea.

As for the centerpiece of Christmas decorations, the tree, most families in Sweden wait until the day before Christmas Eve to bring in the tree and decorate it with Swedish flags on ribbons, lights and hand-made trinkets collected through the years. Candles are still used and many homes keep to a theme like all red trinkets or angels of all kinds.

The Christmas tree is not thrown out before the Twentieth Day Knut, that falls on January 13. And of course this has to be done with a bit of pomp and ceremony. It is fun to throw a party on this day and dance around the Christmas tree for the last time before “plundering” it and throwing it out through the window.

In the olden days farmers spent the dark autumn evenings working with straw. Fewer and fewer people make billy-goats and other ornaments from straw themselves these days. Even the straw is in short supply so it may even be hard to get hold of the traditional sheath of hay to place outside the home for the birds.

Luckily you can get “Swedish” Christmas straw ornaments that are imported from Asia in gift stores and at Ikea and pet stores have many alternatives to sheafs to feed the birds.

Nevertheless it is great fun and very gratifying to make some decorations as well as small gifts by yourself. Reserve an evening for do-it-yourself “pyssel” . You can make heart baskets out of brightly coloured paper, cardboard angels or crackers made of brightly coloured tissue paper. Use scraps for other decorations and for personalizing Christmas cards. In Sweden 80 percent of households send an average of 20 Christmas cards each and it is always the personal touch that counts.

Christmas in Sweden is all about lighting a cozy fire and having as many candles as you can squeeze in. If you are entertaining it is also nice to have candles outside the door or if there is snow you can make “snölyktor” like snow caves made of snowballs with a candle inside.

In rural Sweden of the past, special candles were made for each family member at Christmas. The performance of each candle was given much importance because it foretold all kinds of thing. Candle-making has long been a favourite pursuit but this is quite a fussy business. You can take a short-cut by recycling old stumps. Make a small hole in the middle of the bottom of an old soup can and stick a thick wick through it and tie a knot at that end. Straighten the wick out and tie a pin to the other end on top of the can. Melt candle stumps in a double boiler and pour in about two centimeters of the wax into the can at a time. Let cool and continue the process making sure you don’t get any air bubbles in the wax. When the wax has solidified, open the bottom of the can with a can opener and slide the candle out.

Candles make nice personal gifts. If you are not a good knitter or seamstress or terribly handy with wood, you can put in a little personal touch into bought gifts with a poem or a personal wrapping with sealing wax.

In Sweden you go to the local “julmarknad” to get the traditional ornaments and to get into the Christmas spirit. In Stockholm you don’t want to miss the market at Skansen or at Stortorget in the Old Town. In North America Swedish and Nordic organizations set up Christmas fairs where you can get traditional handicraft.

Hospitality flourishes during this season. In the old days a visitor to a house was not allowed to leave without eating or drinking something “otherwise the Christmas spirit would leave the house.” A glögg party is one of the nicest ways to start off the Christmas season. There are lots of different recipes for this mulled wine. You can be creative but the spices - cinnamon, cloves and cardamom - are essential. You can also buy the ready-made stuff at Ikea and mix it with wine or even keep it non-alcoholic. Serve the glögg with almonds and raisins in small glasses with spoons. All you really need as an accompaniment are ginger snaps. These days however glögg parties have become elaborate affairs where you get a pre-taste of the Christmas buffet.

Many people have their glögg party on December 13, Lucia Day. This day starts early in the morning with a female member of the family clad in white with a bright red sash, and wearing a crown with lit candles serving coffee and Lucia buns to the members of the household. You can use a nightgown if you don’t have a white gown and it may be advisable to get the battery-operated plastic Lucia crown instead of using real candles. The very first documented Lucia in Sweden actually wore angel wings and had the candles on the tray so this the only really Swedish Christmas tradition is open for interpretation. The Lucia rite is repeated throughout the day in various forms in schools, offices and at organized events everywhere.

One of the last nights before Christmas must be devoted to baking and the making of candy. Saffron buns and gingerbread figures are the classics but most families also make various kinds of cookies. Seven types - sju sorters kakor - was the prescribed number in the olden days.

For candy you can make figurines out of marzipan and dip them in chocolate or embark on the other two classics - knäck and ice chocolate that are somewhat more time-consuming. Other favourites are Pink Caramels, Mint Kisses and Brandy Balls.

On a more ambitious level you can make a gingerbread house from scratch or get an assembly-ready one at Ikea and concentrate on the decoration and with the help of cotton for snow and a mirror for a frozen pond create a winter wonderland filled with santas and other figures. This is in essence the non-religious version of the manger.

The Julbord - the Christmas buffet - requires quite a big of pre-preparation.. Much of the food eaten on Christmas Eve has to be prepared ahead which is practical because it makes for a more relaxed day. Nowadays you can take quite a few shortcuts and you can pick and choose the items you want to concentrate on. December 9 is the day when you have to think about lutfisk if you are preparing it from scratch. These days most people buy it ready made which is also true for the ham that you buy cured and bake and dress. If you are ambitious you can make your own sausage and flavour vodka to make your very personal schnapps - aquavit.

The best thing about a Swedish Christmas is that Santa often comes in person to deliver the gifts. In Sweden you can rent a Santa (for about SEK 400) but in North America you have to be creative. Normally the tomte comes in the evening of Christmas Eve and asks if there are any nice children there before he plunks down his sack and distributes gifts. To make the wait for tomte even shorter many families have introduced a “little santa” who comes in during the night and fills stockings with gifts to occupy children with until the big tomte comes.

Before he makes an appearance, it is time to enjoy the Julbord with the compulsory ham, herring, gravlax, herring and beat salad, meatballs, Jansson’s temptation, sausages, ribs, paté, veal brawn, red cabbage and “dip in the pot” all downed with mumma and aquavit and rounded off with rice porridge with its hidden almond.

In Sweden all Christmas Eve activities stop at 3 in the afternoon when the Donald Duck Special comes on television and everybody, absolutely everybody sits down to watch this hour-long programme that has become as much a part of Christmas celebrations as the ham and the tomte.

Some time during this special day there has to be dancing around the Christmas tree and music in some form or another.

Christmas day, December 25, is a quiet day for Swedes. It starts off with a church service in the wee hours of the morning. Julotta services are held in many places in North America.

An Old Documentary on
Christmas in Sweden 1940

Please write of your memories of the Old Country and the Swedish traditions

that your family have passed on to you and your children in the comment

sections below. Thank you and Merry Christmas to one and all. - res