Christmas is a joyful religious holiday when
Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The
Christmas story comes from the Bible. An angel
appeared to shepherds and told them that a Savior had
been born to Mary and Joseph in a stable in Bethlehem.
Three Wise Men from the East (the Magi) followed a
wondrous star which led them to the baby Jesus to whom
they paid homage and presented gifts of gold,
frankincense and myrrh.
To people all over the world, Christmas is a season
of giving and receiving presents. In some European
countries, Father Christmas, or Saint Nicholas, comes
into houses in the night and leaves gifts for the
children. Saint Nicholas is represented as a kindly
man with a red cloak and long white beard. Another
character, the Norse God Odin, rode on a magical
flying horse across the sky in the winter to reward
people with gifts. These different legends passed
across the ages to make the presentday Santa Claus.
Immigrant settlers brought Father Christmas to the
United States. Father Christmas' name was gradually
changed to Santa Claus, from the Dutch name for Father
Christmas, which is Sinter Claas. Although he has
origins in Norse and pre-Christian mythology, Santa
Claus took shape in the United States. Americans gave
Santa Claus a white beard, dressed him in a red suit
and made him a cheery old gentleman with red cheeks
and a twinkle in his eye.
Most children believe that Santa Claus lives at the
North Pole. All year he lists the names of children,
both those who have been good and those who have been
bad. He decides what presents to give to the good
children. He oversees the manufacturing and wrapping
of the presents by his helpers.
Santa Claus supposedly gets his list of toys from
the millions of children who write to him at the North
Pole. Children also find Santa Claus at shopping malls
across the country. They sit on his lap and tell him
what they want for Christmas. Of course, their parents
are probably nearby listening in as well.
On December 24, Christmas Eve, Santa hitches his
eight reindeer to a sleigh and loads it with presents.
The reindeer pull him and his sleigh through the sky
to deliver presents to children all around the world,
that is, if they had been good all year.
Several American towns maintain the spirit of Santa
Claus. The New England state of Connecticut has a
Christmas village where "Santa" and his elves give out
gifts. In New York, a small town called the North Pole
was designed for Santa Claus. There is a post office,
a church and a blacksmith shop, to repair the shoes of
the reindeer.
Santa Claus exists only in our imaginations. But
he, Saint Nicholas, and Father Christmas are spirits
of giving. Christmas has been associated with gift
giving since the Wise Men brought gifts to welcome the
newborn Jesus Christ.
In anticipation of Santa's visit, American children
listen to their parents read "The Night Before
Christmas" before they go to bed on Christmas Eve.
Clement Moore wrote the poem in 1823.
Christmas Cards
Another important custom of Christmas is to send
and receive Christmas cards, which are meant to help
express the sentiment of the season. Some are
religious in nature; others are more secular.
Americans begin sending Christmas cards early in
December to friends, acquaintances, and co-workers.
The post office advises customers to mail early in the
season and avoid the Christmas rush. Some people heed
the advice; others wait until the last minute and then
are upset when their loved ones have not received the
greeting card or the present which they sent.
It seems that nearly every family has its own
unique Christmas observances. Many people are
especially proud of Christmas traditions brought to
the United States from their countries of origin. The
wonderful diversity of foods, music and songs, prayers
and stories all make Christmas the holiday of holidays
in the United States.
One custom in Texas and other parts of the American
Southwest warmly welcomes Christmas visitors. People
cut designs out of the sides of paper bags. Then they
put enough sand in the bottom of the bag to hold a
candle. They line their walkways with the bags, and
light the candles after dark. Guests can easily find
their friend's walkway and follow the candles up to
the door.
In San Antonio, these "luminaries" are placed all
along the River Walk, a paved walkway alongside the
San Antonio River, and an old custom called "Las
Posadas" is acted out.
"Las Posadas" represents the journey that Mary and
Joseph took from Nazareth to Jerusalem on a winter
night 2000 years ago. Mary was about to give birth to
Jesus on their way to be counted in the census. The
inns were full and the only place they could find to
rest was a barn. Jesus was born there and was placed
in a manger, or wooden bin for feeding animals.
Two young people are chosen to play the roles of
Mary and Joseph. They follow the luminaries up to a
house and knock on the door. Joseph asks the owner if
they can stay there for the night. The owner refuses
to let them in, because the house is full. They knock
at several more houses until finally someone lets them
come in to stay the night. The house where the couple
is invited was chosen before the celebration, and has
a doll in a manger, representing Jesus. When the
couple arrives at the house, they and the people who
have followed sing Christmas carols and eat the food
provided by the "innkeeper."
Home for the Holidays
Going home for Christmas is a most cherished
tradition of the holiday season. No matter where you
may be the rest of the year, being at "home" with your
family and friends for Christmas is "a must." The
Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are the busiest
times of the year at airports, train stations and bus
depots. It seems that all America is on the move and
Americans are on their way to spend the holidays with
their loved ones.
This means that the house will be full of cousins,
aunts and uncles that might not see each other during
the year. Everyone joins in to help in the preparation
of the festivities. Some family members go to choose a
Christmas tree to buy and bring home. Others decorate
the house or wrap presents. And of course, each
household needs to make lots of food!
On Christmas Eve, there are evening church
services. Attention is focused on the nativity scene,
while all join in singing carols. On Christmas Day,
there are other religious ceremonies at churches which
families attend before they make their rounds to visit
friends and relatives.
The Christmas table looks much like a Thanksgiving
feast of turkey or ham, potatoes and pie. No Christmas
is complete without lots of desserts, and nothing
symbolizes Christmas more than baked breads and
cookies hot from the oven. Many American traditional
desserts, like other Christmas customs, were started
long ago in other parts of the world. Guests bring
English fruit cake or plum pudding as presents to
their hosts. "Crostoli," a fried bread spiced with
orange peel, is made in Italian-American communities.
As an ending for the Christmas banquet, Americans of
German background eat "Pfeffernuesse," a bread full of
sweet spices. Doughnuts are a holiday offering in many
Ukrainian-American homes. Norwegian "Berlinerkranser"
is a wreath-shaped cookie, dozens are made, but few
are left by Christmas morning! Candy doesn't remain
for long, either, during the holiday weeks. Hard
candies such as peppermint candy canes and curly green
and red ribbon candy are traditional gifts and
goodies.
At Christmas Eve gatherings adults drink eggnog, a
drink made of cream, milk, sugar, beaten eggs and
brandy or rum. Plenty of eggnog or hot cocoa is on
hand in colder climates for carolers, or people who go
from house to house to sing Christmas carols to their
neighbors.
Long ago, each child hung a stocking, or sock, over
the fireplace. Santa entered down the chimney and left
candy and presents inside the socks for the children.
Today the tradition is carried on, but the socks are
now large red sock-shaped fabric bags still called
stockings. Each child can't wait to open his or her
eyes to see what Santa has left in the stocking.
Giving gifts is a Christmas tradition. However, in
recent years, more and more people have complained
that Christmas is too commercialized especially in
large cities. Store owners begin advertising and
decorating very early in hopes of selling more goods.
Children demand more and more from Santa Claus because
manufacturers and retailers saturate television with
advertising. Some people believe that the origin of
Christmas has been lost. Commemorating the birth of
Jesus Christ is the very reason for Christmas and
should be central to the celebration.
Every year human interest newspaper articles remind
readers of the origin of Christmas. Shelters for the
homeless and hungry appeal through the newspaper to
send money or gifts to those who are less fortunate.
Members of organization such as the Salvation Army
dress up as Santa Claus and stand on the sidewalks
outside stores to collect money for their own soup
kitchens. City police forces supervise a "Toys for
Tots" donation, in which people contribute new or used
toys for children in hospitals and orphanages.
Employees give a small part of their paychecks as a
donation to a favorite charity. Such groups and
organizations try to emphasize the true message of
Christmas— to share what you have with others.
