Advent Series #22
Yesterday was the 22nd day of Advent. We’re getting close to Christmas. And today we celebrate the Winter Solstice. Soon the Light will return. The New Year will dawn, and we will have the opportunity to begin again. In every moment we have the chance to start anew, to let go of the past and step into the Now. It seems particularly important this year, as we move into 2021, to give our conscious attention to newness. It is critical that we interact with one another and our world from a posture of Peace, Love, Compassion, and Flexibility. Who was it that first said, “They times, they are a changing?” And the release date for this timeless song was January 13, 1963?? A month before I was born??? I think it’s time we pay attention to Mr. Dylan’s wise prophecy, don’t you?
Yes, the times they are a changing…and yet there are aspects of our being that are timeless. The celebration of the Winter Solstice is one such experience. Also known as Midwinter, this holy celebration dates back to the dawn of agriculture among people who depended upon the return of the sun. Long, long ago, in a time before written language, there were people all over the planet in lands now known as the British Isles, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Iran, and the many countries of South America. Some of these cultures were nomadic, hunting and gathering their food as they travelled with the seasons; and some were more rooted in place, growing crops for their sustenance. Although these various societies had little or no contact with one another, they had something in common – they were all at the mercy of Mother Nature.
They were very conscious of natural cycles…day and night; light and dark; summer, autumn, winter, and spring. They were economically dependent on monitoring the progress of the seasons; starvation was common during the first months of the winter. In temperate climates, the midwinter festival was the last feast celebration, before deep winter began. Cattle might be slaughtered, the meat preserved, so they would not have to be fed (and the people would eat) during the winter. The majority of wine and beer made during the year was finally fermented and ready for drinking at this time. This final feast held a dual purpose – it provided sustenance to stave off starvation, and it served as a celebration of gratitude, honoring and thanking the gods for the abundance of the past year; and it served as a time of prayer that the sun would return.
Imagine with me now, it is the longest, darkest night of Winter. The weather has been growing colder for months now, as the days grow shorter and the sun’s warmth is a distant memory. The people do not know why this is so…they only know that the gods must have something to do with it. They feel sure that if the gods are pleased, the sun will return, and all will be well. And so they develop and practice rituals to please the gods… ceremonies to honor the sun as a prayer for its return. From the beginning of time, human beings…Druids, Romans, Greeks, Egyptians, Persians, and Maya…celebrated the Light.
Let us remember that this was before written language, that stories were passed down by word of mouth. Rather than words as symbols, storytellers (who were considered the honored wisdom keepers) painted pictures through song and poetry…used body language to act out their dramas. They brought the power of imagination to their history and legends. And they understood that every tale had many meanings. And so, while the most literal people might use ritual to please the gods, bringing back the sun, the shaman, mystics and sages understood the ceremonies as celebrations of growing awareness and expanded consciousness…the progression from ignorance to wisdom and enlightenment… the revealing of Spiritual Light.
There is not a clear date on the timeline when polytheism ended and the belief in one God began. This was a long evolutionary transition in the history of religion, a very gradual process. During this time of change, Pagan traditions shifted and changed, slowly blending with ancient Hebrew traditions, and ultimately being adopted…some would say co-opted…by the early Catholic church. And so, closely linked to the Solstice, is the celebration of Christmas. We are not taught that these two have common roots. Only that pagans celebrated Solstice, and that quite separate from this tradition, Jesus was born to Mary and Joseph in a stable in Bethlehem. But we should know better…everything is connected.
The early Catholic church was in competition with the Pagan holiday of the Romans. What started as a holy mass in Europe, probably at the time assigned to the birth of Jesus (probably April) was moved back to the Winter Solstice by church fathers to serve its own needs. Without diving in too deep, I’ll give just a few details to paint a picture of how this happened. The church found themselves in competition with Zoroastrianism, which was a favorite of Roman soldiers, and which was devoted to worship of the sun. We see the effects of this tradition today in the Christian celebration of the Sabbath – Sunday. This also explains why the Jewish Sabbath (Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown) did not carry forward into the Christian tradition.
During the Dark Ages, northern Europe’s pagans were converted en masse to Christianity and the church found it difficult to stamp out pagan ritual. It was simply easier for church fathers to allow the Pagan ceremony and ritual to be absorbed into the new Christmas festival. Some examples…the Germanic tribes worshipped the evergreen, a symbol of eternal life, and the Druids revered the mistletoe, which symbolized fertility. The burning of the Yule Log had its roots in another Druid custom: rolling a flaming wheel down a hill on Winter Solstice night, to show the sun how to come back. And it is believed that the legends surrounding Santa Claus descend from an actual man, Saint Nicholas, who was born in what is today called Turkey in the fourth century CE. He is thought to have been a Bishop at a time and place where Pagan and Christian practices were still intermingling. Everything is connected…
So in closing for today, we acknowledge the timeless celebration of Light. The Pagan tradition practices its ceremony and ritual as it waits for the return of the sun as Life Giver…the Buddhist tradition honors Siddhartha Gautama, who waited for enlightenment as he sat under the Bodhi Tree for 49 days…the Hebrew tradition celebrates the rededication of their Temple with the burning of the oil lamp for eight days…and the Christian tradition pays homage to the birth of the Christ in every heart, celebrating the season of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. No matter the appearance that these holy-days are individual and separate occurrences, they are not. EVERYTHING is connected.
Know that today and always, I am here to support you.
Know that today and always, you are stronger and wiser than you know.
May we each live from our Radiant Light…be well…stay in touch…know our unity…and thrive!
And…may we know the Absolute Beauty and Wonder of this Grace-filled, once-in-a lifetime day, as Infinite Intelligence continues to pour Its blessings upon our world.
