An Old-Fashioned Christmas
Along with other sentiments, Christmas is certainly swimming in nostalgia. We long for “an old-fashioned Christmas,” by which we mean one that feels like Christmas did when we were children and first encountering the tradition. So it is a surprise to learn how recent most Christmas traditions are. Santa Claus is a creation of the early 19th Century, as are the domestic gift exchange and Christmas trees. Still, for a young country like America, a tradition that goes back 200 years is hoary with age. But how far back could we go and still feel like we were experiencing a familiar kind of Christmas?
The date of Christmas was set by the 3rd Century or so. As soon as Christianity became legal and could be practiced openly, the Church set about nailing down the date of Easter (AD 325). Christmas and Epiphany were being observed by then, too. But these were strictly of interest to Christians - the date of Christ’s birth was a religious observance only. The date was set on December 25 - more or less on the winter solstice, which was an inconvenience to the Church. Pope Leo the Great (reigned 440-461) griped one Christmas about superstitious Christians climbing Vatican Hill to come to church and turning back (to the east ) to salute the sunrise on Christmas morning (a pagan practice).
The early medieval period - what we loosely call the Dark Ages - saw a lot of development in the observance of Advent. The oldest liturgical tradition from Advent and Christmastide we still recognize is probably the O Antiphons (fully established by the 8th Century) chanted by monks the week before Christmas. The O Antiphons were later made into a hymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” which we still sing. But they were first made into poetry in the Old English period, and laity enjoyed them.
We would also recognize from this period the Christmas feasting, which had been a feature of all the old, agricultural societies. It took on a special poignancy in northern Europe, however, where the winters were darker and colder. Small kings and local magnates, who occupied and governed from their halls, would gather their companions and servants and sit around the fire at Yule (the pre-Christian name of the festival) and enjoy food and drink. Indeed, when some hall-lord visited another at winter, they would stay on for a long time (the roads making travel difficult). It was said they planned “to drink over Yule,” i.e., to enjoy each other’s company in the hall throughout the period. Anglo-Saxon kings held court during Christmastide, a public occasion.
Dramatization of Christmas in the form of the creche -- the Nativity scene - came in the 13th Century, begun by Francis of Assisi (d. 1226). Focus on the Holy Family and identification with them was enabled by presenting them as “just like us.” Tableaux like these were eventually acted out. In England, drama begins with miracle plays - religious plays presented in or at church. They began in the 10th and 11th Centuries as recitations developed out of the liturgy. By the early 13th Century, they were dramas unto themselves. Out of this developed the Christmas pageant.
Music for the miracle plays and eventually the Christmas pageants started out as chants sung in church, but soon new songs - in freshly-composed verse set to popular dance tunes - were being created. The 14th and 15th Centuries saw the carol come into its own. The English court was speaking English now, not Norman French, and so we might expect Christmas to be celebrated not only with feasting, but with drama and popular music that everyone could enjoy, and even join in singing.
Along with the development of the carol, the practice of wassailing was firmly established by this period. Landlords and aristocrats would open their houses to their dependents at Christmastime and serve rich food and drink to their tenants. People began to go from one manor house to another, singing carols and begging for treats.
People gave gifts at Christmas or New Year’s, too. Elizabeth I (reigned 1558-1603) was sure to get a good haul of loot from her admirers. But generally, most giving was public, from the relatively rich to the relatively poor. It wasn’t about exchanging love-tokens, but showing hospitality.
The Puritans disdained Christmas. After the English Civil War, they banned its celebration. America got its start during these times, and Christmas was frowned upon in many parts of colonial America. The reinvention of Christmas began about 1825 (referenced above). It was a conscious attempt to leave behind the rowdiness of the medieval Christmas that the Puritans objected to and create a new, sanitized, domestic festival, replete with new symbols. Clement Clark Moore (author of “A Visit From St. Nicholas”) and his cohorts succeeded all too well. Most of what we think of as “an old-fashioned Christmas” has been developed since their day.
The date of Christmas was set by the 3rd Century or so. As soon as Christianity became legal and could be practiced openly, the Church set about nailing down the date of Easter (AD 325). Christmas and Epiphany were being observed by then, too. But these were strictly of interest to Christians - the date of Christ’s birth was a religious observance only. The date was set on December 25 - more or less on the winter solstice, which was an inconvenience to the Church. Pope Leo the Great (reigned 440-461) griped one Christmas about superstitious Christians climbing Vatican Hill to come to church and turning back (to the east ) to salute the sunrise on Christmas morning (a pagan practice).
The early medieval period - what we loosely call the Dark Ages - saw a lot of development in the observance of Advent. The oldest liturgical tradition from Advent and Christmastide we still recognize is probably the O Antiphons (fully established by the 8th Century) chanted by monks the week before Christmas. The O Antiphons were later made into a hymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” which we still sing. But they were first made into poetry in the Old English period, and laity enjoyed them.
We would also recognize from this period the Christmas feasting, which had been a feature of all the old, agricultural societies. It took on a special poignancy in northern Europe, however, where the winters were darker and colder. Small kings and local magnates, who occupied and governed from their halls, would gather their companions and servants and sit around the fire at Yule (the pre-Christian name of the festival) and enjoy food and drink. Indeed, when some hall-lord visited another at winter, they would stay on for a long time (the roads making travel difficult). It was said they planned “to drink over Yule,” i.e., to enjoy each other’s company in the hall throughout the period. Anglo-Saxon kings held court during Christmastide, a public occasion.
Dramatization of Christmas in the form of the creche -- the Nativity scene - came in the 13th Century, begun by Francis of Assisi (d. 1226). Focus on the Holy Family and identification with them was enabled by presenting them as “just like us.” Tableaux like these were eventually acted out. In England, drama begins with miracle plays - religious plays presented in or at church. They began in the 10th and 11th Centuries as recitations developed out of the liturgy. By the early 13th Century, they were dramas unto themselves. Out of this developed the Christmas pageant.
Music for the miracle plays and eventually the Christmas pageants started out as chants sung in church, but soon new songs - in freshly-composed verse set to popular dance tunes - were being created. The 14th and 15th Centuries saw the carol come into its own. The English court was speaking English now, not Norman French, and so we might expect Christmas to be celebrated not only with feasting, but with drama and popular music that everyone could enjoy, and even join in singing.
Along with the development of the carol, the practice of wassailing was firmly established by this period. Landlords and aristocrats would open their houses to their dependents at Christmastime and serve rich food and drink to their tenants. People began to go from one manor house to another, singing carols and begging for treats.
People gave gifts at Christmas or New Year’s, too. Elizabeth I (reigned 1558-1603) was sure to get a good haul of loot from her admirers. But generally, most giving was public, from the relatively rich to the relatively poor. It wasn’t about exchanging love-tokens, but showing hospitality.
The Puritans disdained Christmas. After the English Civil War, they banned its celebration. America got its start during these times, and Christmas was frowned upon in many parts of colonial America. The reinvention of Christmas began about 1825 (referenced above). It was a conscious attempt to leave behind the rowdiness of the medieval Christmas that the Puritans objected to and create a new, sanitized, domestic festival, replete with new symbols. Clement Clark Moore (author of “A Visit From St. Nicholas”) and his cohorts succeeded all too well. Most of what we think of as “an old-fashioned Christmas” has been developed since their day.