Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Origin And Observance Of Christmas.—Ii.
" Heigh ho , heigh ho , Summer is at hand , Winter has lost the game , Summer maintained its fame ; Heigh ho , heigh ho , Summer is at hand . " But in modern times this festival has disappeared . Lately Winter was unconthly shapen of wood , ancl being covered
with straw , was nailed against a large wheel , and the straw being set on fire , the apparatus was rolled down a steep hill . Agreeably to the intention of its inventors , the blazing wheel was b y degrees knocked to pieces and the Winter effigy split into a thousand fiery fragments . It is however time , as this last instance brings us round
again to the figure of the sun in the shape of a blazing wheel rolled down a steep hill , to notice the modern celebrations of the Christ-festival on the continent , to ivhich , as they are entirely papal innovations , we have now no conformities in England . The "Waits , " representing the Italian "Pfifferari , " and our "Wassail Cups" as they were called in Lincolnshire ,
waxen images of the child Jesus ( menino Decs ' ) in Portugal ; were borne about by females , and opened to view for a small douceur . The Christmas carol was sung at this time , beginning" Gocl bless the master of this house , The mistress also , Ancl all the little children
That round the table go . " These are our only relics of the following Popish mummeries , principally taken from a paper in Morgenblall , published at Tubingen in 1855 . It is to the south of Germany where the papal creed is almost universal , that the most curious ceremonies iu the
celebration of Christmas obtain . These are there principally round the cradle of the nascent Deity , which , from the following and other Christmas carols they designate by the Latin Frcesepe : —¦ "In dulci Jubilo , Singet nun ancl seid fro ! Alle unsere Wonne
Leit m Procsepio Sie leuchtet vor die Sonne . In matris gremio . " It was no doubt this ultramontane view that inspired Corregio with his inimitable "Notte , " now in the Dresden collection , where the entire illumination proceeds from the menino Deos in tlio cradle . Nothing is spared to ive the
g cradle the most picturesque and richest effect . Tinsel and foil of every colour glitter round the prccsepe , aud moss and artificial flowers are intended to pourtray the rural character of the event .
hi the oldest periods of Christianit y little notice was taken of the birth or the early years of Christ ; the crucifixion ancl ascension were the two portions of the life of the Saviour principally celebrated . Good Friday and Easter were the special holidays of the church . The Nativity was first begun to be celebrated in Egypt by the anchorites of the desert , and it thence into Gaul
passed , where , in the middle of the fourth century from that event , Christmas was transferred to the heathen Jule . The Greek church soon followed that example . The Advent , however , and the time thence to tho Epiphany , tho twelve epagomen of the lunar year , did not got into the church calendar till the sixth centuryin
; Germany not perhaps till the beginning of the ninth , as the Synod of Mainz in 813 does not include it amongst its holy days . Soon after , the commencement of the ecclesiastical year was changed from March to January , and the holy birth with them ; this induced tho celebration of Advent also by the church , to meet these supplimentary fcastings so intimately
connected with the heathen Beltine . The ordained meats and special dishes of the season kept hold of the palates and the memories of the people . According to the Romish view , the time of Advent was intended as a worthy preparation of the great feast of the church : an earl y long fast was necessary to purge the mind and induce a sober train of thought before
the mighty mystery . No noisy pleasures were allowed , no marriages coulcl be celebrated , and sermons suited to the occasion were preached nearly every day , whilst the homilies and lessons were chosen from those portions of holy writ containing the prophecies of the approaching solemnity . As the great day drew nearer , the ceremonies and preachings increased
in fervour , ancl the glorious event seemed each clay more strongly struggling into life , each moment nearer to become a fact . On the fourth Advent Sunday at vespers , whilst the altar was splendidly illuminated , the priest advanced , preceded by a train of incense bearers and acolyths , with uncovered heads to the choirand began tho evangelist text of
, the clay ' . 'Missus est Angelus , " upon which , in some dioceses , a beautiful maiden in a rich and splendid dress , met him , to represent with scenic display the Annunciation , using the words of the evangelists for the dialogue . It was afterwards taken as a perfect dramatic exposition outside the church , and then possibly made a greater impression on the minds of
the ignorant laity than the mere reading tho text from the New Testament . On Christmas eve the dark and solemn vestments and ornaments of the church which had prevailed throughout Advent , were changed to splendid garments , rich with coloured embroideries ancl gold ; the choir and altars
received their most costly adornments , and when in the cockcrow mass , the birth of the Saviour was solemnly enunciated from tho altar , the entire multitude in the thickly crowded temple fell upon their knees to adore the newborn Saviour . On Christmas clay itself , the priest gave from the altar the
fixed proper lessons and relevant portions of scripture , as an explanation , of the meaning aud importance of the festival . The prophecy of Isaiah , " A virgin shall conceive , a virgin bear a son , " was insisted on ; but in some places—and this a matter of considerable curiosity—the verses of the Erythian Sybil , then believed genuine , we readduced of equal authority
with those of the great projiket . When miracle plays became more in vogue , the Nativity , eminently calculated for dramatic display , was a frequent theme , and greedily seized on at a time when rejoicing and festivity engaged both clergy and laity in festive observance . At this feast , immediately after . the Te Deum , the
adoration of the shepherds was put on tho stage ( wc only use this modern dramatic term to translate " missus est in scenani ) , " in the following manner at Rouen . A cradle was placed behind the high altar , with a figure representing the Virgin Mary at the foot . A boy stood at tho entrance of the choir , dressed as an angel , announcing the glad tidings to the shepherds , who advanced from the great west portal with scrips and hooks , ancl then jirocecded to the cradle , whilst the anthem , " Gloria in excelsis Deo , "
and "Pax terris , " was thundered from the organ . Tho Virgin Mother was greeted reverently , whilst the figure of the child in its crib received adoration on bended knees . A solemn mass was then performed , and when finished , the priest demanded of the shepherds in Latin , " What have ye seen ( Quid vidistisVf and they answered , " We have seen
the new born Lord ( Vidimus Deum novum natum ) . " The event was similarly dramatised in other parts of France , and also in Germany . Thus in the cap ital of the Archbishopric of Salzburg , a real cradle was borrowed , with the Virgin near it . She asks Joseph , designating him merely as her nephewto rock itwhoacknowledging her only as
, , , his cousin , complies . The recognition at the time of this pair , as husband and wife , was completely ignored . An anthem was then p layed and Christmas hymns sung , in which much occurs evidently derived from the yule songs of heathendom So in one beginning" Jam sol recedit
, , ¦ i gneus , " ive have doubtless the translation of an earl y invocation to the sun divinity ; and in another , " 0 Heros invincibilis dux , " Thor may certainly be apostrophized as a fit prototype to tho archangel Michael , to whom it is now addressed ; and tlie archangel himself ) who , as "Michael Helios , "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Origin And Observance Of Christmas.—Ii.
" Heigh ho , heigh ho , Summer is at hand , Winter has lost the game , Summer maintained its fame ; Heigh ho , heigh ho , Summer is at hand . " But in modern times this festival has disappeared . Lately Winter was unconthly shapen of wood , ancl being covered
with straw , was nailed against a large wheel , and the straw being set on fire , the apparatus was rolled down a steep hill . Agreeably to the intention of its inventors , the blazing wheel was b y degrees knocked to pieces and the Winter effigy split into a thousand fiery fragments . It is however time , as this last instance brings us round
again to the figure of the sun in the shape of a blazing wheel rolled down a steep hill , to notice the modern celebrations of the Christ-festival on the continent , to ivhich , as they are entirely papal innovations , we have now no conformities in England . The "Waits , " representing the Italian "Pfifferari , " and our "Wassail Cups" as they were called in Lincolnshire ,
waxen images of the child Jesus ( menino Decs ' ) in Portugal ; were borne about by females , and opened to view for a small douceur . The Christmas carol was sung at this time , beginning" Gocl bless the master of this house , The mistress also , Ancl all the little children
That round the table go . " These are our only relics of the following Popish mummeries , principally taken from a paper in Morgenblall , published at Tubingen in 1855 . It is to the south of Germany where the papal creed is almost universal , that the most curious ceremonies iu the
celebration of Christmas obtain . These are there principally round the cradle of the nascent Deity , which , from the following and other Christmas carols they designate by the Latin Frcesepe : —¦ "In dulci Jubilo , Singet nun ancl seid fro ! Alle unsere Wonne
Leit m Procsepio Sie leuchtet vor die Sonne . In matris gremio . " It was no doubt this ultramontane view that inspired Corregio with his inimitable "Notte , " now in the Dresden collection , where the entire illumination proceeds from the menino Deos in tlio cradle . Nothing is spared to ive the
g cradle the most picturesque and richest effect . Tinsel and foil of every colour glitter round the prccsepe , aud moss and artificial flowers are intended to pourtray the rural character of the event .
hi the oldest periods of Christianit y little notice was taken of the birth or the early years of Christ ; the crucifixion ancl ascension were the two portions of the life of the Saviour principally celebrated . Good Friday and Easter were the special holidays of the church . The Nativity was first begun to be celebrated in Egypt by the anchorites of the desert , and it thence into Gaul
passed , where , in the middle of the fourth century from that event , Christmas was transferred to the heathen Jule . The Greek church soon followed that example . The Advent , however , and the time thence to tho Epiphany , tho twelve epagomen of the lunar year , did not got into the church calendar till the sixth centuryin
; Germany not perhaps till the beginning of the ninth , as the Synod of Mainz in 813 does not include it amongst its holy days . Soon after , the commencement of the ecclesiastical year was changed from March to January , and the holy birth with them ; this induced tho celebration of Advent also by the church , to meet these supplimentary fcastings so intimately
connected with the heathen Beltine . The ordained meats and special dishes of the season kept hold of the palates and the memories of the people . According to the Romish view , the time of Advent was intended as a worthy preparation of the great feast of the church : an earl y long fast was necessary to purge the mind and induce a sober train of thought before
the mighty mystery . No noisy pleasures were allowed , no marriages coulcl be celebrated , and sermons suited to the occasion were preached nearly every day , whilst the homilies and lessons were chosen from those portions of holy writ containing the prophecies of the approaching solemnity . As the great day drew nearer , the ceremonies and preachings increased
in fervour , ancl the glorious event seemed each clay more strongly struggling into life , each moment nearer to become a fact . On the fourth Advent Sunday at vespers , whilst the altar was splendidly illuminated , the priest advanced , preceded by a train of incense bearers and acolyths , with uncovered heads to the choirand began tho evangelist text of
, the clay ' . 'Missus est Angelus , " upon which , in some dioceses , a beautiful maiden in a rich and splendid dress , met him , to represent with scenic display the Annunciation , using the words of the evangelists for the dialogue . It was afterwards taken as a perfect dramatic exposition outside the church , and then possibly made a greater impression on the minds of
the ignorant laity than the mere reading tho text from the New Testament . On Christmas eve the dark and solemn vestments and ornaments of the church which had prevailed throughout Advent , were changed to splendid garments , rich with coloured embroideries ancl gold ; the choir and altars
received their most costly adornments , and when in the cockcrow mass , the birth of the Saviour was solemnly enunciated from tho altar , the entire multitude in the thickly crowded temple fell upon their knees to adore the newborn Saviour . On Christmas clay itself , the priest gave from the altar the
fixed proper lessons and relevant portions of scripture , as an explanation , of the meaning aud importance of the festival . The prophecy of Isaiah , " A virgin shall conceive , a virgin bear a son , " was insisted on ; but in some places—and this a matter of considerable curiosity—the verses of the Erythian Sybil , then believed genuine , we readduced of equal authority
with those of the great projiket . When miracle plays became more in vogue , the Nativity , eminently calculated for dramatic display , was a frequent theme , and greedily seized on at a time when rejoicing and festivity engaged both clergy and laity in festive observance . At this feast , immediately after . the Te Deum , the
adoration of the shepherds was put on tho stage ( wc only use this modern dramatic term to translate " missus est in scenani ) , " in the following manner at Rouen . A cradle was placed behind the high altar , with a figure representing the Virgin Mary at the foot . A boy stood at tho entrance of the choir , dressed as an angel , announcing the glad tidings to the shepherds , who advanced from the great west portal with scrips and hooks , ancl then jirocecded to the cradle , whilst the anthem , " Gloria in excelsis Deo , "
and "Pax terris , " was thundered from the organ . Tho Virgin Mother was greeted reverently , whilst the figure of the child in its crib received adoration on bended knees . A solemn mass was then performed , and when finished , the priest demanded of the shepherds in Latin , " What have ye seen ( Quid vidistisVf and they answered , " We have seen
the new born Lord ( Vidimus Deum novum natum ) . " The event was similarly dramatised in other parts of France , and also in Germany . Thus in the cap ital of the Archbishopric of Salzburg , a real cradle was borrowed , with the Virgin near it . She asks Joseph , designating him merely as her nephewto rock itwhoacknowledging her only as
, , , his cousin , complies . The recognition at the time of this pair , as husband and wife , was completely ignored . An anthem was then p layed and Christmas hymns sung , in which much occurs evidently derived from the yule songs of heathendom So in one beginning" Jam sol recedit
, , ¦ i gneus , " ive have doubtless the translation of an earl y invocation to the sun divinity ; and in another , " 0 Heros invincibilis dux , " Thor may certainly be apostrophized as a fit prototype to tho archangel Michael , to whom it is now addressed ; and tlie archangel himself ) who , as "Michael Helios , "