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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 15, 1982)
Portland Observer, December 15,1982 Section II Page 3 'Deck the halls with boughs of h o lly ... “ The G lory o f Lebanon shall came unio thee. the fir tree, the pine tree and the box together, to beauti fy the place of thy sanctuary — Isaiah 60:13 From the earliest time evergreens have signified eternal life and their use is one o f the most beautiful Christm as traditions. The art of using evergreens, cones and fragrant herbs dates back to the Egyptians, thousand o f years before the birth of Christ. References to the use of wreaths and garlands of leaves are found in Oriental literature, in the traditions of the Druids, and in the records of the ancient Hebrews. The decorative use of flowers and fruits was continued by the Greeks and Romans during the early part of the C hristian era but the church leaders decreed that this "p agan “ practice must cease. However, the usage was too deeply rooted in cus tom and in the 7th century the Pope decided not only to allow but to en courage the popular use of greens and flowers. Holly The holly holds special s ig n ifi cance for Christm as. The name “ h o lly ” is believed to be derived from the word “ h oly.” H olly was used in ceremonies long before the Christian era; the Druids considered it to be holy and used it to cure the sick. It also was believed to keep evil spirits from the houses and to pro tect the house from lightning. Branches hung around the house and stable were a good omen and it was believed that cattle would thrive if holly were placed where they could see it. In England and Scotland the h o lly leaves with heavy spines were called “ he" and those that were smooth referred to as "she," and the leaves were believed to determine who would be the head of the household the following year. The Scotch-Irish who settled in Pennsylvania continued this custom and believed if holly were brought indoors during good weather the w ife would rule the home, but, if brought in during bad weather, the man would be master. • The ceremony, "B urning of the Greens" comes from the notion that I f holly were left in the home after T w e lfth Night it would bring bad 3uck. Another belief was that if holly ¡were left inside too long spirits w ould disturb the maidens o f the household. 5 One custom said holly must be burned, not thrown away, let bad Juck come to the household; another custom said holly must be kept until the follow ing year to protect the house from lightning. H o lly is a popular symbol of Christmas throughout the world. In Italy sprigs are used to decorate the manger at Christmas. In Germany it is called “ C hristdorn,” signifying // THIRD ANNUAL HOLIDAY CROUP SHOW the crown o f thorns placed on Christ's head at the Crucifixion. An old German legend says the holly berries were originally yellow but were turned red by the blood of Christ. To the Pennsylvania Dutch the red berries signified the blood of Christ and the white flowers the purity o f his conception. thru Dec 31 Open Sundays '2 4 Mon -Sat 1 1-5 Ki/y-» Ml*** r.»>< kivawn cioahu » FOLK CRAFT GALLERY JOO S W FIRST A V IN tlF Portland. Oregon 97204 222OO6J Mistletoe Mistletoe, which is a parsitic plant growing on trees, is steeped with leg end. Scandinavian legends say the mistle toe must always be suspended to serve as an instrument of good to counterbalance its earlier destruc tion. In ancient B ritain the Druids made a stately procession into the woods to procure m istletoe, with that found in the oak tree consid ered especially sacred. When the chosen oak was found the leader cut the sacred plant, which fell into a cloth held by a group o f maidens. Sacrifices and incantations followed and when the crowd dispersed each was given a small piece to place over their doorway. Early Christians called the mistle toe "all-heal” and it was considered to be a symbol of the healing powers o f Christ and used to decorate churches at Christmas time. It was considered so sacred that enemies made a truce when they met under its branches. The early Christians in England gave each other a sacred kiss of peace and goodwill before re ceiving mass. "S alute on another with a holy kiss." (Romans 16:16) As a decoration in homes, mistle toe, along with hotly and other greens, has long brought good fo r tune. Lovers through the ages have sealed vows with a kiss under the mistletoe, which ht.ng« happiness, good foxune Jong life and fertility. Yule log The worship of trees had a signifi cant place in the history o f man. Back in the ancient days when a place was cleared in the forest for a new village, a group o f trees was left in the center of the clearing. One of these was designated as the “ mother tree“ — the source o f life and re li gious activity. As settlements grew, pioneers set forth to new areas, tak ing with them their household gods and customs. From this ancient tree worship came the Christmas observance of the Yule Log. In France the Yule Log was called “ La Tronche” — the tru n k — and was lit for a few minutes on Christ mas Eve. Then the fire was put out and the log covered w ith a cloth. The children beat the cloth with sticks to see if they could bring the log to life again, but their efforts were o f course fruitless. The ch il dren were then sent away to ask for giveness for their sins and while they were gone their parents hid presents under the cloth. So when they re turned to try again, they found their presents. The Yule Log might have origin ated in the Greek ceremony cele brating the birth of Apollo and A r temis. This comes from the tradition Aaron Mitchell and Son Plumbing * Experienced Plumber * Licensed and Bonded Established in business for 25 years Have lived in the Portland Area for 40 years WE STAND BEHIND ALL JOBS 1703 N.E. Alberta 288 4040 c 7 fy / Cwt/esti/w c / J hmiwh / An old tale tells how. when Mary and Joseph were on their way to Bethlehem they sew a cherry tree. Because they could not reach the fruit. Mary asked Qod's help and the tree held Its limbs down to her. o f the Mother Leto worshipped in the form of a tree trunk or log. The Yule Log was also considered to be the fire mother o f the Sun God. The log was half-burned on Christmas Eve after a gift cere mony, then stored as protection against lightning. The ashes were buried by fruit trees to insure great er productivity during the following year Cbrlatmaa tree Although the German people are usually credited with originating the Christmas Tree, the idea began much earlier. The Egyptians took date palms— signifying the triumph of life over death— into their houses during winter solstice. The Romans trimm ed trees with trinkets and small masks o f Bacchus. V irg il wrote about decorating trees with toys. In northern Europe the Druids tied apples and cakes to tree branches to honor Odin and candles to honor their own god. Balder. In his story, "The First Christmas Tree,” Henry Van Dyke said W ini fred, a missionary, went from Eng land to take C hristianity to the Druids. He begged them not to wor ship their gods and make sacrifices to them, but to take a small fir tree into their homes to celebrate the birthday of Christ. Martin Luther is said to have been walking home through the forest on Christmas Eve. He tried to tell his family about the beauty of the stars and the trees but words failed him. So he brought in a small fir tree and ( / / < <y C /fiw tf c w riw y j decorated it with candles. In Lithuania trees were decorated with small windm ills or birdcages made of straw; in Norway with fish nets; in Sweden with strings of flags; in Poland with feathers and rib bons. The Christmas Tree did not arrive in England until 1829 when a Ger man living in London decorated a tree for his children The first deco rated tree in the U.S. was supposed to have been set up during the Revo lutionary War by homesick Hessian soldiers. ' A myth explains why Christmas Trees are decorated with tinsel. A poor woman trimmed her tree care fully but during the night spiders covered it with their webs. When the Christ Child saw this he turned the webs to silver. Under the mistletoe Channel set diamonds to comple m e n t y o u r m o s t fa s h io n a b le outfit. Handcrafted in precious 14k gold, available in your choice of sizes Com e in now and select the size most suitable for you. From our Art Contempo Collection. Design copyiighled 1982 J ack E wing ( RFATIVF ILW H I lAiln’r Eu'inQ ( Imr irtrrlry ii'ilh ,i ['momil loin I’ I ¿17 S I V M o r m o n • PorlLind ( )rrqon M720S • 2J7-(X1 did not know she’d take it so, Or else I ’d never dared: Although the bliss was worth the blow, I did not know she’d take it so. She stood beneath the mistletoe So long I thought she cared; I did not know she’d take it so, Or else I ’d never dared. Counter Cullen Thank you fo r your patronage during the past year. We wish you a Happy Holiday Season. Devlin's Cafe 1332 N. S kidm ore St. Brlnolnn h nw « Yule Log. ? ■ . y . » *
