Post-Christmas Thoughts
Here it is, December 26, and you survived yet another expensive holiday. Do you feel relieved, or are you one of those people who get a thrill out of all the gifts and massive meals? Do you await with great anticipation for Christmas morning, or do you open your gifts on Christmas Eve? Did you reflect on whose birthday it was? Did you ever wonder where the idea of exchanging gifts on a birthday that wasn’t yours or the recipient came from? I did. So, I decided to do a little research to find out.
Gift Giving
It seems that the act of giving gifts cannot be absolutely nailed to a particular event or tradition. Some believe that the act of giving gifts is rooted in paganism. They believe that some of the pagan rituals, which were held during the winter, were incorporated into Christmas rituals by Christianity. Most Christians believe the act of giving gifts to others is symbolic and redirected to the Three Wise Men, the Magi, who gave gifts to the infant Jesus. You might say we imitate the 3 Wise Men. When we give to others, quoting the Bible verse that says, “When you do unto the least of mankind, you do unto me.” That is not a direct quote, but it is a general summation.
Still another explanation in early modern Europe relates that it also had its roots in Christmas begging. They say that at that time, Christmas wasn’t the family-centered holiday we celebrate today. During the holiday seasons, bands of young men, often rowdy, would “wassail” from home to home and demand handouts from the gentry, says Stephen Nissenbaum, who is author of the book “The Battle for Christmas.” He explains that Christmas involved an exchange between the social classes back then.
But when Christmas became more popular during the 1800s in the United States, the recipients of gift-giving shifted from the lower classes to gifting the children. Santa Claus, or St Nicholas, is probably one of the most prominent figures in our gift-giving practices. St. Nicholas, as he was first known in Europe, morphed into Father Christmas, and later, here in America, he morphed into the iconic figure we know today as Santa Claus. It was then that a marketing opportunity was created, bringing us to the Santa-in-the-shopping-mall phenomenon that we recognize today, and as they say, “The rest is history.”
Another common gift-giving custom is to donate to charities. In keeping with the Christian ethic of helping those in need, donors give money or donate items, such as food and clothing. Christmas donations are a significant part of many non-profits yearly fundraising budgets, including our own (D.C. Historical Society).
Christmas Cards
Another tradition intrigued me and that is the sending Christmas greetings to each other which has been going on for hundreds of years. The first recorded use of ‘Merry Christmas’ was in a Christmas letter sent in 1534.
In 1611, a Christmas card, or at least a sort of a Christmas card, was given to King James I of England (who was also King James VI of Scotland). This was more like a sizeable ornamental manuscript than a card as we think of them today. It was 84cm x 60cm (33″ x 24″) and was folded into panels (it might have been folded so it could be carried around). It had a picture of a rose in the center, and a Christmas and New Year message to the King and his son was written into and around the rose. Also on the manuscript were four poems and a song, so much more of a message than is on most of the cards today!
Sir Henry Cole started the custom of sending Christmas cards, as we know them today, in the UK in 1843. He was a senior civil servant (Government worker) who had helped set up the new ‘Public Record Office’ (now called the Post Office), where he was an Assistant Keeper, and wondered how it could be used more by ordinary people.
Christmas Tree, Ivy & Mistletoe
Another question… From where did the practice of bringing a live pine tree inside our homes to decorate and call it a Christmas tree come?
I thought about our beautiful Veterans’ tree in the courthouse and wondered from where the idea of the Christmas tree began. (Photo on front page.) I soon realized there were many legends regarding the Christmas tree, too many to cover completely here. Some date back to very ancient times. Still, if we look for actual documentation of its origins, we do not find any until recent centuries.
There is no doubt that legends and traditions show the convergence of many customs, some born outside the Christian culture and others strictly Christian. We will consider here some of the most important ones that were forerunners of the Christmas tree.
Since ancient times people would take evergreen plants and flowers into their huts, seeing in them a magical or religious significance. The Greeks and Romans decorated their dwellings with ivy. The Celts and Scandinavians preferred mistletoe, but many other evergreen plants, such as holly, laurel, and pine or fir branches, were considered to have magical or medicinal powers that would ward off illness. This belief was found especially among the people of the northern regions where the climates had long, cold, dark winters. Some believed that it was as if these plants revived thoughts of the coming spring while everything around them lay dormant.
Now, are you up for a little quiz? Allow me to ask you a few easy questions…
Do you know the names of the three kings who visited the baby Jesus after his birth? No? Their names were Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar (I had to look them up.)
Do you know the name of the popular Christmas song that was written for Thanksgiving? It was Jingle Bells.
Christmas Stockings
Can you say where the hanging of Christmas stockings came from? Christmas stockings are a relatively new tradition. It has been around only since the 1800s. Clement Clarke Moore famously referenced them in his 1823 poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” with the line “The chimney hung the stockings with care” though no one is quite sure how it started. One popular legend says that there was once a man with three daughters whom he worried about finding suitable husbands as he had no money for their dowries. Hearing about the family, St. Nicholas snuck down the chimney and filled the girls’ stockings, set by the fire to dry, with gold coins.
Eggnog
We have all heard of Eggnog at Christmas. Do you know that story and from where it originated? Eggnog has its roots in posset, an old British cocktail of milk curdled with spiced sherry or brandy. For the settlers in America, though, the ingredients were expensive and hard to come by, so they created their own cheaper version with homemade rum called “grog.” Bartenders named the creamy drink “egg-and-grog,” which eventually evolved into “eggnog” due to the wooden “noggin” mugs it was served in. The drink was popular from the start. George Washington even had his own recipe, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac:
“One-quart cream, one-quart milk, one dozen tablespoons sugar, one-pint brandy, pint rye whiskey, pint Jamaica rum, pint sherry — mix liquor first, then separate yolks and whites of 12 eggs, add sugar to beaten yolks, mix well. Add milk and cream, slowly beating. Beat whites of eggs until stiff and fold slowly into the mixture. Let it sit in a cool place for several days. Taste frequently.”
“Merry Christmas” vs. “Happy Christmas”
Okay, final question… Why do we say, “Merry Christmas” when we say, “Happy Thanksgiving,” “Happy Easter,” and “Happy Birthday?” Good question, (I had to look this up too.) The truth is that no one is entirely certain about this either. But some English people say, “Merry Christmas” is more closely associated with the rowdiness of the “lower class” of citizens “Happy Christmas.” is associated more with the “higher-class” citizens. In fact, the royal family adopted “Happy Christmas” as their preferred greeting. The late Queen Elizabeth continued to wish her citizens a “Happy Christmas” until her death. (Still, it doesn’t roll off my tongue well.)
I want to finish with the fact that “Merry” has been used since at least 1534. We know this because a dated letter was discovered from bishop John Fisher to Henry VIII’s chief minister Thomas Cromwell. Also, the English carol, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas was introduced in the late 1500s.
If it’s good enough for an English carol and a bishop, it’s good enough for me. What say you?
God Bless
Patricia Richards Harris
Doddridge County Historical Society