Bringing Light into the season of darkness
(by Trish Reynolds - December 15, 2006)
Let the candle flame light, the dark and longest night.
Archeological indications are that the winter solstice in particular was a spiritually significant time. Neolithic observatories such as Stonehenge in England and Ireland’s Newgrange reveal that man has long known how to accurately calculate the solstices and equinoxes. During the early Roman Empire the winter solstice celebrated the birth of the Persian Sun god, Mithras or Sol Deus Invictus (The Invincible Sun) who was widely worshipped in the Mesopotamian provinces of the Empire. In the European regions, including the city of Rome itself, Saturn, the god of agriculture was honored with the Saturnalia Feast from December 17 through the solstice, which fell on December 24 or 25 of the Julian calendar.
The designation of December 25 as a Christian holiday was first recorded in texts dating to 325 AD under Constantine, when Christianity was made the state religion of the Roman Empire. While made official under Constantine, it is widely held that Emperor Aurelian first decreed Christmas in 274 AD though early adherents to the new religion didn’t universally accept it. Since the indigenous religions of the time viewed this occasion as the rebirth of the sun, it made political sense for the Church to adopt the obvious symbolism and choose this period for the celebration of the nativity of the Christ Child. The Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian calendar in the late fourteenth century, but the date of Christmas remained the 25.
In an agrarian society, the winter solstice marks a crucial point in the natural cycle. The word comes from the combination of Sol, the Latin name given to our sun, and ‘stitium’ a Latin word meaning ‘a pause’. For a few days twice a year the sun appears to do just that, pause in its journey through the sky. In ancient times the winter solstice was considered the mid-point of the winter season. The sun would stop its voyage toward darkness and cold and after a brief pause, begin to move back toward longer days, times of new growth and renewal of life. In a spiritual sense, it represents hope. The pause of the sun reminds us that the darkness will be banished, the light will be renewed, and that all things once dead will find life again.
The Christmas tree, Yule log, mistletoe and other icons of the Christmas season have all been adapted from various solstice traditions. While usually viewed as purely decorative today, these items have deep symbolic significance in the elder faiths as well as to modern Neopagans.
By lighting a ceremonial fire, our ancestors were encouraging the return of the sun. In Scandinavian lore the Yule log must catch fire on the first try and burn until dawn to illuminate the longest night. The word "Yule" may have roots in the old Germanic word ‘jul’ meaning to turn.
The use of candles has always been seen as a symbol of divine light. In some cultures they focused on the spiritual belief that beings of light, warmth and new life, would turn the Great Wheel and the spring would come again.
Today with most of us lacking the means to burn a log of that size, a simple decorative log with holes bored for candles to be lit and re-lit to last through the longest night is a fun, modern adaptation.
Mistletoe was one of a group of plants including pine, holly, spruce, and yew, which were used to decorate and freshen homes during the cold season. Since these plants appeared to flourish during the winter months, they became symbols that life continued its cycle even in the coldest and shortest of days. Mistletoe grew on the bare branches of sacred oaks, making them appear to bloom even through the dead months, and was considered sacred by the Druids. The custom of kissing under the mistletoe seems to have originated in the late eighteenth century. While the actual bough used might just as easily have been holly, ultimately it was the bright berries and rich green color that made mistletoe the modern favorite.
While decorating indoors with evergreens can be traced back to ancient times, and Vikings may have hung fruit in the branches of fir-trees for the wandering Odin, the custom of bringing an evergreen tree indoors is a fairly modern adaptation. It appears first in Germany in the middle of the sixteenth century as Christians brought evergreen trees into their homes and decorated them to honor the Christ Child. When Queen Victoria married Prince Albert of the German Royal family, he brought the custom to England. In 1841 Windsor Castle had its first Christmas tree, decorated with candles and a variety of sweets, fruits and gingerbread ornaments. Other fashionable families soon adopted the tree as their own and before long the custom made its way across the Atlantic to the United States.
Feasting has long been associated with winter celebrations whether it was the Saturnalia of the Romans, the Solstice of the Gaels, Scandinavian Yule or Christmas dinner. In pre-industrial times, the winter months would have been lean. Survival meant subsisting on the last of the crops and meat harvested at the end of autumn. Taking from the precious provisions to feast in honor of the returning light was an incredibly courageous affirmation of faith in the divine.
Whatever the specific symbolism, the birth of the Christ Child, or Sol Deus Invictus, the holiday remains today what it has always been - a season of faith and hope in the midst of darkness.
This year’s winter solstice occurs on December 21 at 7:22 p.m. EST
Trish Reynolds' e-mail address is reynolds@northjersey.com.
Source: www.mtoliveweekly.com/NC/0/359.html
