The Christmas season is rich in symbolism, and the holiday traditions from the West that we so blindly follow in Singapore have deep roots. Nearly all come from a religious background, but some have taken on secular aspects.
In the past, Advent – the month leading up to Christmas and Lent were theologically similar. They were times of of devotion, introspection and repentance — but while Lent has retained its original tone, Advent now includes secular aspects that are not a part of Biblical accounts of the time.
Non-biblical symbols of Christmas include the following:
- The Advent wreath – the wait for a promized miracle – has been with us since the Middle Ages, and it continues to exist in pretty much the form as it did then — a circle of evergreens holding four candles, one of which is lighted on each of the Advent’s four Sundays. Some will add a fifth candle in the middle which is lighted on Christmas Eve.
- The Christmas tree – the most prominent symbol of Christmas has uncertain origins. Roman Catholics credit St. Boniface with creating one in the 8th century while Lutherans believe Martin Luther began the practice. There is also a version of it called the “Jesse tree.” It comes from Isaiah 11 that talks about the Messiah who will “sprout from the stump of Jesse.”
In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. - Isaiah 11:10
- The colour purple – Many churches (Catholic and Protestant) will have their ministers put on purple vestments. Just like how yellow dyes was reserved for royalty in ancient Chinese history, purple dyes were very expensive in many Western civilization past, and thus reserved for royalty. Therefore, it was chosen to designate the Christian year’s most regal event, the birth of its king.
- Food – The season is also a time of very many special food delicacies like turkey, mince pies, egg-nog, hams, pot roasts. Most of these were unknown in Bible days. There was hunger and the great concern of many living in those times was finding enough to eat. What they did find tasty then would likely not appeal to the “oh so discerning” sensitive palates of modern man.
- Santa Claus – The jolly man in the red suit, who makes his lists of children who have been good and checks it twice before giving gifts at Christmas. It is believed that Santa Claus originally stemmed from a character, St Nicholas, in the Middle Ages. He was born to a wealthy family, and gave away all of his money, most of it to children. On the feast day honoring him, December 6, nuns would leave food and clothing at the homes of the needy. Now he makes his visits on December 25th. Families with children may, or may not, follow this tradition. Some believe it is a way to teach that God gave mankind the greatest gift of all, his Son – our Saviour.
Secular traditions aside, there are six enduring symbols of Christmas that are found in the holy scriptures. Although separate from each other, they are closely related, and tell a wonderful story.
- Angels – played an important role in the birth story. In Luke 1:26-38 the angel Gabriel tells Mary that she is to be the mother of Jesus, and in Matthew 1:20 an angelic visitor assures Joseph that it is God’s will that he take the pregnant Mary as his wife.
- Shepherds – they were the first to visit the newborn child. These humble men were directed by an angel to Bethlehem to behold the wondrous sight. (Luke 2:8-20). Having seen it, they told of the event to others.
When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. - Luke 2:8-20
- The wise men – The Bible doesn’t say how many there were but the wise men from the east came at a later time. (Matthew 2:1-12). They were guided to Bethlehem by the fourth scriptural symbol, the star (Verse 2), and brought gifts for the child (Verse 11).
- The manger – The most wonderful of all the Bible symbols of Christmas is found in Luke 2:16, where the shepherds found the holy family — Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. It has significance that transcends all other Christian symbols of the season, because it contains the promise of forgiveness and hope for a needy world:
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.
– Luke 2:11 NIV
Other than the above, we still maintain our family’s annual tradition of gathering with friends and have sumptuous feasts of delicious food and sweet things.. but we do so in a spirit of fellowship, of enjoying one another’s company but more importantly, of remembrance of a world-changing event.
Our family also decided, a number of years back, to adopt a new tradition.. one that we learnt from another family and which we thought was a good idea. We sat down with the kids, explained what we would like to do as a family, why we were doing it, and the vote was unanimous. We’ve done it for a number of years now and we’re hoping that our children will remember it in years to come and continue it in their respective families. So what’s that new tradition?
We continue the tradition of gifting but instead of buying gifts for one another, we set aside the money that we would have otherwise spent on one another and donate that to a charity each year. Since our return to Singapore and church, our charity is the the Angel Tree project that our church runs to collect and distribute food hampers and gifts to the less fortunate and needy in the neighborhood around the church.
Those are our family’s traditions.
What about you? Why do you celebrate? What family traditions do you observe during this period?
- adrian t
