Spiritual Christmas
Traditions from the "Olde Country"
by Frank Schaefer
On this Christmas Day (Eve)
I would like to share some of those Christmas Traditions that have a
spiritual meaning and make a connection to Scriptures of Promise and Hope.
I’m not against secular
Christmas traditions and stories, such as those surrounding a certain old
man with a white beard and his cute, mythical little helpers, but in church
we celebrate the true and original meaning of Christmas—the incredible story
of the birth of God in form of a poor little baby--the incarnation of the
Son of God.
We Americans pride
ourselves on being a diverse people. We may not have many original Christmas
traditions, but we do appreciate and celebrate many traditions from around
the world. The way you celebrate Christmas often depends on where your
family originally comes from.
Today, I would like to
present five Christmas traditions from the “Olde Country” (Europe),that we
may not be very familiar with. These are inspiring traditions and whether
we celebrate them or not; they are certainly worthwhile learning about. In
fact, they each celebrate an important aspect of the Christmas story at
home.
I would like to invite you
into the living room of Christian folks from France, Germany, Russia, the
Czech Republic, and Great Britain. Our first visit leads us to the Loire
Valley, France . . .[continue]
