Advent and Christmas

When I first came to the Czech Republic, the local Christmas traditions charmed--and confused--me.  Why do Czechs fast the morning of Christmas Eve?  Why do they wait till nightfall to eat? Why don't they decorate till Christmas Eve? Besides these questions, I was also surprised to find Advent wreaths in nearly every home, and to see that Three King's Day/Epiphany is also honored.  It wasn't until I began to look into the traditional keeping of Advent and Christmas that the traditions began to make sense.

Though the Czech Republic is not a largely Christian nation, many of the Christian traditions are faithfully kept.  Advent--the four Sundays leading up to Christmas-- is a time of preparation.  Just as Lent is a more somber and thoughtful time dedicated to fasting and prayer before Easter, Advent is a "little Lent" of preparation for the feasting of Christmas as well as looking to the Second Coming.  As such, Advent should be a time of fasting, and while Christmas concerts, public decorations, and other festive events occur pervasively here in December, December 24th is still kept as a fast by many.  (Some additional folklore is that if you don't eat until supper you'll see a golden pig.). One student said that you should not eat the Christmas Eve meal until it is dark and the first star has appeared.  This would align with the idea that the day ends with nightfall.  Not only do many wait to decorate until Christmas Eve, but also my church does not put up their tree until Christmas Eve.  But once night falls on Christmas Eve, the feasting of the 12 days of Christmas can begin.

Many know "the 12 days of Christmas" only from the popular song or from the Shakespeare play Twelfth Night (which refers to the final day of celebrating Christmas, the eve of Epiphany or Three Kings Day, when the coming of the Magi is honoured).  Traditionally, after the fasting of Advent, there were 12 days of feasting and celebration. This also explains why in the Czech language, the word for Christmas (Vanoce) is plural.

My husband happily complied when I wanted to already put up a Christmas tree at the beginning of December, but last year I tired of the tree shortly after Christmas Day, and I often find the actual days of Christmas to be a bit of a letdown after the festivity of Christmas markets and concerts.  2020 has brought the unexpected blessing of dimming down the celebrations of early December. By and large Christmas markets have been closed or significantly reduced, concerts have been cancelled, and my daughter's preschool Christmas recital will be shared with parents by video only.  The result is that I'm saving the festivities for the days of Christmas.  My husband plans to cut down a tree sometime before Christmas and I don't feel the pressure to decorate it until Christmas Eve.  In fact the only decorations we have up in our home are white Christmas lights in some vases, a lit star in our window, and our nativity scene.  I haven't given up on potentially making a wreath for our door, but I don't feel the need to complete it or hang it yet.  Similarly, no Christmas baking has happened, but I think that would be a great activity with my children once the preschool is closed for holidays. The same goes for Christmas films.

This past Sunday was be the third Sunday of Advent.  It's not too late to consider making some new traditions.  The idea of slowing down, contemplating and praying more, and then really fully enjoying the days of Christmas is particularly appealing to me this year, and perhaps it will be for you too.