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Dec. 20, 2000 - Bill Cooper
53:52
RE-Run - Carols and Customs #2
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Thanks again for getting your Cringy 100$ Get your damn Jumbo Shady.
Strange impression Easy hour as we try.
Lights out for the broken.
I'm going to be a good boy, a serious good boy.
I'm going to be a good boy, a serious good boy.
Good evening.
You're listening to the Hour of the Time and I'm Michelle.
Tonight we will continue with our special holiday presentation of carols and customs of Christmas.
🎶 Christmas carols and carols by the Carole and the Hymn of St. John 🎶
the the
🎶 Christmas carols and carols by the Carole and the Hymn the
the Thank you.
We left off in the last episode with the 15th century, and it is here that we must adopt a different approach to our subjects We have, to this point, been able to follow the development of the Christmas Carol along a fairly straight and linear timeline.
But as we reach the Renaissance, the linear timeline will not serve us very well.
Here we encounter something of a rift in the space-time continuum that seems to last for almost 500 years.
It is during the Renaissance that we find a huge collection of carols, well-known and greatly beloved, of mixed or uncertain origin.
There are ancient songs that did not receive their holiday lyrics until many centuries later, and there are Christmas lyrics, whose original tunes are long lost, that did not receive new musical settings until the 17th, 18th, or 19th centuries.
Consequently, towing the mark of a linear timeline at this point will not be particularly helpful in our studies.
The most sensible approach to the subject from the Renaissance forward is to look at the individual holiday customs and observances, their origins and pagan histories, and see how the music developed around these traditions.
This will also allow us to look at some modern 20th century seasonal songs that have no religious significance at all, but rather give their glory to the pagan custom or invent new customs all their own.
Some of the Christmas traditions we mentioned briefly in the previous episode of the Hour of the Time.
Tonight we can take time to delve into them with more detail.
Let's begin with the ubiquitous Christmas tree.
Of all Christmas symbols, none is more familiar than the Christmas tree.
The decorating of the tree is one of the oldest of customs and prevails wherever trees are available in either living or artificial forms.
As we discussed in the previous episode, this practice of decorating the evergreen tree predates the birth of Christ by many, many centuries, and it is mentioned as a heathen ritual in the Bible in Jeremiah 10, verses 3 and 4.
From its earliest practice, the evergreen tree was symbolic of the rebirth of the sun god, Nimrod reborn as Tammuz.
And the gold and silver ornaments were symbolic of the sun and the moon.
As this custom continued through the centuries, many legendary tales and adaptations developed as other cultures and religions claimed the tradition as their own.
In the celebration of the pagan Yule season, the ancient sun-worshipping Teutons are said to have decorated fir trees For they likened the sun to the spreading and blossoming of a great tree.
In this culture, the tree was symbolic of this celestial sun.
The decorations were symbolic of the sun, moon, and stars, and little carved animals that were hung from the branches represented the sacrifices of animals made to the sun god.
From the earliest times, the ancients held nature in great reverence.
All things had their gods.
Among them, the water, the meadows, and the trees.
For the feast of Bacchus in Roman times, evergreen trees growing in the forest were decorated with trinkets, among which were highly ornate masks of Bacchus.
Those other trees, toward which the wind turned the masks, were supposed to be endowed with great fertility.
This custom was believed brought into Germany by the conquering hordes of Drusus, and from Germany it has passed as a Christmas custom into other lands.
In the tenth century, a legend, said to have first been told by George Jacob, an Arabian geographer, began to spread all through Europe.
The story said that on the night Christ was born, all the trees in the forest, even those in the cold ice and snow, bloomed and bore fruit.
This story caught the imagination of the people and may have helped associate the decorating of evergreen trees with the Feast of the Nativity.
A well-known German folktale tells of a forester who, on Christmas Eve, had bolted his door and was seated at his fireside with his family around him.
On hearing a faint knocking, he opened the door and found a little child, half-frozen, lying in the snow at the door.
He took the child within, warmed and fed it, and tiny Hans, his son, gave up his own bed to the little stranger.
The next morning the family was awakened by the singing of a band of angels, and they found that their unbidden guest was surrounded by a divine radiance.
He appeared before them as the heaven-sent Christ child, and, breaking a branch from the fir tree beside the door, he said it in the earth and said, I have been warmed and fed by you.
This is my gift in return.
This tree will evermore bear its fruit on my birthday, and you will have full abundance throughout the year.
The gaily decorated fir tree inside the home, as we know it today, did not become a common practice until the 16th century, and got a tremendous boost in popularity during the days of Martin Luther.
The idea of using the tree at Christmas seems to have been dormant for several centuries, but once it sprang up again in Germany, its continued use remained unabated around the world to the present day, with only one notable exception in all Christian cultures.
The Reformation in Scotland was both violent and destructive.
Nothing escaped its fury.
In some parts of Scotland, Christmas is not observed, and even to this day the event is barely acknowledged by the Scotch people.
Only in very small enclaves, where the Roman Catholic Church has a hold on the culture, is Christmas celebrated in Scotland.
Christians continue to try to make the Christmas tree into a Christian symbol, saying that the tree is the symbol of Christ as the tree of life, offering his blessings of light, life, and wisdom to the world.
But to anyone with an ounce of logic and the smallest inkling of the history of the custom, this makes no sense whatsoever, especially in light of Jeremiah's stern biblical warnings against the pagan practice.
Still, they try.
As universal a symbol as the Christmas tree has become, there are actually very few songs dedicated to it.
The best known is, of course, O Tannenbaum, or O Christmas Tree, a jazz version of which was played as our opening musical selection tonight.
This air is exceedingly well known in America, and several of our states have used the tune for their state songs.
It is generally associated with the words, Maryland, my Maryland, which was one of the most popular Confederate songs of the Civil War.
In terms of classically styled Christmas carols, O Tannenbaum, a carol of German origin, is really the only carol dedicated solely to the subject of the Christmas tree.
However, during the 20th century, several popular songs were written for the holiday season devoted to the subject of the tree.
In the late 1950s, a woman named Carol Lynn wrote a song entitled, The Happiest Christmas Tree.
I am not going to play this particular song for you, but I will play the other 20th century composition written in honor of the Christmas tree.
tree. Ho! Ho! Ho! He! He! He! Someone came and they bought me and took me home with them."
I am not going to play this particular song for you, but I will play the other twentieth-century
composition written in honor of the Christmas tree. This was composed by the great and enduring
Hollywood actor Mickey Rooney, whose film career to date has spanned almost sixty years.
In addition to being a fine actor, Rooney has always been a very accomplished musician and composer in his own right.
This particular song, Little Christmas Tree, is performed by Nat King Cole.
Little Christmas tree No one to buy you Give yourself to me You're worth your weight in precious gold, you see.
My little Christmas tree.
I promise you will be Nobody else's little Christmas tree
I'll make you sparkle Just you wait and see
My little Christmas tree I'll put some tinsel in your hair
And you'll find there's a strange new change That you have never seen
I'll bring my boy a toy He'll jump for joy
To see his bright new queen With me you will go far
I'll show St. Nick Just who you really are
And there'll be peace on earth When Daddy lights your star
My little Christmas tree I'll make you sparkle
Just you wait and see My little Christmas tree
With me you will go far Oh
I'll show St.
Nick the tree you really are.
And there'll be peace on earth and every life's good start.
My little Christmas tree.
You're big enough for three.
My little Christmas tree.
As many of the customs of the past days were incorporated in the early Christian Christmas
festivals, so into the music of the Christmas season crept the influence of the songs relating
to Jewish Hanukkah, the Roman Saturnalia, the Bach festivities, and the Druid ceremonials,
wherein the candles, the holly, the ivy, the yule log, wreaths, and mistletoe were significant
symbols.
and we'll see you next time.
The origin of some of the gayest and happiest of the carols is directly traceable to these early secular customs.
Many old English customs date back to the time of the Druids.
The Yule log, the most famous of these, is held to be particularly significant, although it is a custom that is found in Scandinavian countries also.
The Druid's custom was to light fires during the Yule season to burn out the sins and evils of the past year and drive away evil spirits.
A huge log was cut and blessed by the Druid priest.
The log was brought into the home and each member of the family sat upon it and saluted it, believing this to bring good luck.
It was lighted and kept burning throughout the season.
If the whole log were to burn up on that one night, this might bring misfortune.
So it was kept burning as long as possible.
In Druidic days, a brand was saved throughout the year to rekindle the new log at the next Yule season.
As the custom developed in England and became more Christianized, a great variety of music was associated with the ceremony of the Yule log.
Singing and dancing always took place in the forest around the tree from which the log was to be cut.
During the felling of the tree, carols were sung.
Embers were kept alive, and were used to light the New Year's fire.
In the castles of the lords of Old England, a holiday was declared as long as the log burned, and no work was to be done.
For this reason, the men were careful to pick out as large a log as they could find.
The Yule log custom still prevails in England.
In the attempts to make the Yule custom more Christianized, practitioners of the tradition now state that the Yule log symbolizes Christ as the light of the world.
Throughout Great Britain, the Great Halls were always trimmed with holly, evergreen, and mistletoe.
This procedure may be traced directly to the Roman Saturnalia, at which time the house was always trimmed with evergreen and holly.
The sprig of holly in the window at this season became a custom with the early Christians in England who believed that it protected them from their pagan foes.
Superstition maintained that holly was hateful to witches, and that it would bring charms into the houses where it was used, but in certain English localities There was the belief that Holly should not be brought into the house until Christmas Eve.
The ivy, too, was believed to have protective powers, and its heart-shaped leaves were said to symbolize the holy spot where God had set foot on the earth.
The wreath, with its round shape, had always symbolized the favor of the sun god, and was indicative of its protection, presence, and blessing.
From this came the ivy crown, worn in all pagan festivals, and the reward of the laurel wreath, bestowed upon great warriors in victory, indicating the blessings of the gods.
Later, the wreath was made from holly, and as the pagan customs began their transition into Christianized traditions, the holly wreath with its prickles and blood-red berries became symbolic of the crown of thorns Worn by Jesus Christ at the time of His Crucifixion.
Now the morning breath of every man quite hath come near, And as Mary bore Jesus, who was wrapped up in seer, And as Mary bore Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all to be, And so the three in the green room did walk the morning, Honey, honey, as the birds sing, the green wood is but the honey.
Now the honey bears the berry as green as the grass, and many more people will die of the frost.
And many more people die by the grain of the honey, Now the morning is early and now has the moon.
The day we watch it is so joyful and fun.
And Mary bore me the bride that Gabriel bore to me, and the Word spread in the greenwood, it was the morning, morning, morning.
And the Word spread in the greenwood, it was the morning, Thou the holy, and the merry, and the loving, is great.
Then grant me a day of full moon from the day.
And may be born in the time of day, in the month of May.
and the three in the greenwood did walk upon it.
In 200 A.D. Tertullian denounced the custom of Holly and Ivy and Reeds because of their
pagan origin and the early Christians in Italy were forbidden to use the holly.
The Spanish Church Council in the 6th century also forbade its use.
In France, too, it became unpopular.
But in England and Germany, the custom of using branches and wreaths of holly has never been relinquished.
Ivy was used first in the early Bacchanalian festivals, because it was the badge of the god Bacchus whom they were fetting.
In many Yuletide songs, Holly is spoken of as male and Ivy as female.
The greenery that is first brought into the house at Christmas signifies whether the man or his wife will rule the house during the coming year.
The Druids believed that the mistletoe was sacred and that it had healing powers.
In fact, it was considered so sacred That if enemies met under the mistletoe in the forest, they would lay down their arms and declare a truce for a day.
It was also a druidic belief that only happiness would enter a home when mistletoe hung over the door.
When the Yule season approached, the mistletoe was cut down from the sacred oaks by the Prince of the Druids, who used a golden sickle, though archaeologists declare that these legendary sickles were actually made of brass.
The mistletoe was distributed to the people who believed it possessed powers of protection against sickness and evil.
Later, among Christians, it was said to symbolize the healing powers of Christ.
Mistletoe was often hung over the entrances to the homes of the pagans in Scandinavian countries to keep out evil spirits.
An old Scandinavian myth tells of the seemingly invulnerable god, Baldr, who was struck down by a dart made from mistletoe.
The tears of his mother, Frigga, became the white berries of the mistletoe, and it was decreed that the plant must never again be used as a weapon.
Frigga, who was the goddess of love, henceforth gave a kiss to anyone who passed under the mistletoe.
It may be that our present custom of kissing under the mistletoe derives from this ancient legend.
For many centuries, mistletoe was rarely brought into the Christian churches.
However, it did become a Christmas custom at York Cathedral in Old England.
On Christmas Eve, the church was decorated with greenery and mistletoe was laid on the altars, symbolizing the advent of the Messiah, the Great Healer, a message that harked back to the Druidic belief that mistletoe had healing powers.
The historian Stookley saw in this ritual the surviving customs of the Druids, something that seemed to have passed over the heads of the priests who decided such decorations on the high altar would be a good thing to do.
And Stookley wrote, quote, This mistletoe they cut off the trees with their upright hatches of brass called kelts, fixed upon the staffs they bore.
Innumerable are the relics of these instruments found all over the British Isles."
As part of the ceremony of York's Cathedral, once the mistletoe had been set upon the high altar, pardon and freedom, public and universal liberty were proclaimed at the gates of the town.
Heralds blew the trumpets The festivities of the season were then declared officially underway, and no restraint was set upon dicers, card players, gambling, and all kinds of revelry.
Men and women from all walks of life began the holiday revelries with processions through the streets, wearing wreaths upon their brow bearing mistletoe, holly, and ivy.
So, what can the eye see when they open the door?
The man who's gone has left us all.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And I'm sitting on the corner seat of the train.
Oh, the barley bag on the door, and the knife in the hand, And Mary, poor sweet, she's a stranger, so we'll stay.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And I'm sitting on the corner seat of the train.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And Mary, poor sweet, she's a stranger, so we'll stay.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And I'm sitting on the corner seat of the train.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And I'm sitting on the corner seat of the train.
Oh, I'm riding on a train, and I'm riding on a train, And Mary, poor sweet, she's a stranger, so we'll stay.
No festival of the year has been so prolific of interesting customs as Yuletide.
In one sense, it forms a link with the past of which we cannot afford to lose sight.
An old writer quaintly describes how the sacred rites and ceremonies, though differing in detail, had a common origin.
He goes back to the flood of Noah, and asserts that as mankind then had one religion, So in the lapse of time, after the Tower of Babel and the dispersion of nations, all manner of different creeds cropped up.
He finds that the allegories and symbols of the pre-Christian priesthood became more and more confused, though certain things remained incorrupt and imperishable, such as the fall of man, retribution, forgiveness, and faith.
The single idea which is common property of all nations, underlying the fabric of universal carolry, is the celebration of the seasons.
Their return was everywhere welcomed with song.
The clergy endeavored to connect the remnants of pagan idolatry with Christianity because of the impossibility of suppressing it.
The very word Yule was used by Saxon and other northern nations to denote the Feast of Thor.
A time of mingled feasting, drinking, and dancing, with sacrifices and other religious rites.
We apply it today, indifferently, to Christmastide and its songs.
On Christmas Eve, country carol singers of most European nations spent half the night tramping the ice-bound ways and frosty woodlands, now and then striking up their melodies which sang of the heavenly birth and earth's substantial comforts and joys A fine hearty welcome greeted them at the houses and farmsteads whose occupants sat up in impatient anticipation.
We can believe the carolists put forth their best efforts, oblivious to the open-eyed bribery of the full foaming tankards of local brew that was their reward.
Towns and cities had their poor carolers called waits.
who visited patrons with unfailing regularity on the eve of the Nativity.
The practice was ancient and honorable.
Bishops themselves at one time made a custom of singing carols with their clergy at this time.
In one form or another, we may trace the same tradition throughout all of Europe.
Luther has testified to the fact that in his youth he sang from house to house, village to village, with a carol party.
French peasants notoriously sang their noels in church, tavern, and household.
In Russia, schoolchildren, country folk, and church choirs sang traditional songs under the windows of their neighbors, who bestowed small coins on the carolists for the joy of their songs.
Caroling is of very early origin in France, and its carols are known as noels.
The poor often sing in the streets during the season, and money is tossed to them from the windows.
One of the oldest and still most popular of all French carols is Il est né or he is born.
It is the most popular.
Il est né or he is born.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
And the home of the brave?
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
And the home of the brave?
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
And the home of the brave?
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
In Holland, during the weeks before Christmas, singing processions go through the streets.
A huge star is carried before the procession.
Money is collected from those who line the way, and it is given to the poor.
In Czechoslovakia, carolers carried a kresh, or a pictorial representation of the manger scene.
In these bands of traveling singers, the little boys would dress in the costumes of the wise men.
A similar custom existed in Poland, where young men, representing the wise men, brought gifts of food singing from house to house on their way.
There are many quaint customs connected with Christmas in Poland.
Feasting begins as soon as the stars appear in the sky and all partake of the Nativity meal which concludes with a small wafer decorated with scenes of the Nativity which have been blessed by the priest and brought from the church.
The sharing of the wafer signifies friendship and good fortune.
Hay or straw is placed under the tablecloth at the feast in commemoration of the birth of Jesus in the stable.
In many homes, a chair is provided at the table for the Christ child.
The emphasis of the Polish customs is quite religious, and many of the carols reflect more reverence than revelry.
And this is a particularly lovely Polish carol, a lullaby sung to the infant Jesus.
Lullaby sung to the infant Jesus.
When the lovely lady was caressing her son She sang to him in a cheerful song
Lullaby sung to the infant Jesus.
During the Christmas festivities in Mexico, a procession of townspeople gathers, some carrying statues of Mary, Joseph,
and the angels.
Everyone carries a lighted candle, and there is much singing.
The procession stops before some home, and in song, lodging is requested.
commemorating the search of Joseph and Mary for lodging on their way to Bethlehem.
The master of the house replies in song, and at first refuses admittance.
Finally, after the requests are repeated, he opens his home to the people, and all enter with great rejoicing, kneel together, and pray.
This is followed by refreshments, and often by dancing, and is as elaborate as the household can afford.
In Italy, the shepherds come from the hillsides to the cities each Christmas time.
They come dressed in leather trousers, flaming red vests and bright blue coats, wearing large, broad-brimmed felt hats bedecked with waving peacock feathers and red tassels.
Bringing their bagpipes and a primitive reed instrument similar to the English horn, they often come into the towns a full month before Christmas and spend each evening serenading the citizens with simple songs.
During their sojourn, they play before each street altar and before every carpenter shop.
On Christmas Day, they return to their homes, bountifully supplied with enough money and food to carry them through the cold winter.
This custom is still followed in some of the large cities, particularly in Naples, Where the Pipers are always to be seen for several days preceding Christmas.
One of the oldest and possibly the most beautiful of any of these shepherd bagpipe songs, or Zamfornia, is called On That Most Blessed Night.
Nearly 200 years ago, when the great German composer, George Frederick Handel, heard the song in Naples, He was so charmed by the beautiful melody that he later used it for the musical setting of the lovely contralto aria, He Shall Feed His Flock, in the oratorio The Messiah.
On that most blessed night is now known generally as the Carol of the Bagpipers,
and is the most well known of the Italian Shepherd carols.
In the evening's calm, the birds are singing, and the stars are shining.
Silent the evening star is a-lingering through the halls of Bethlehem.
A brighter star is shown, for may thy children be found at Bethlehem all.
On that most blessed night is now known generally as the Carol of the Bagpipers,
and is the most well known of the Italian Shepherd carols.
A man of wise men singing, he's good with his bow.
A man of law with bow.
Come, seek a way in yonder tall. Your feet shall lift and fall, for with a leap of sight a lovely light shall shine
for all.
🎵🎵🎵 In Spain, everyone attempts to do a good deed for a fellow man before the midnight hour on Christmas Eve.
Those who are in prison for light offenses are set free by officials.
After midnight mass, there is celebration, including fireworks and dancing in the streets.
Family reunions are held at which there is always a large bowl called the Urn of Fate.
From it, each person draws a name, and he is to be a devoted friend to that person for the entire year.
Candles are lighted before the nativity scene which is in every home and is as elaborate as the family can afford.
In the late afternoon of Christmas Day, there is a special church service.
In the Cathedral of Sevilla, the choir boys, clad in costumes of the seventeenth century, dance before the altar.
The ancient Basque song in honor of the angel Gabriel is representative of the sort of music sung and danced in the churches of Spain.
This is the angel Gabriel.
The angel Gabriel from heaven came.
His wings as driftwood snow, his eyes as flame.
All hail, said he, thou Lord of age and age.
Most highly favored lady, Gloria!
For known of blessed mother, how shall we?
All generations, God and all over thee.
Thy son shall be Emmanuel, thy spirit foretold.
Most highly revered lady, Gloria.
Of our Emmanuel the Christ was born.
He kept the temple on a crystal thorn.
With all of this detailing of European customs and traditions,
We mustn't forget Christmas in the United States.
In colonial days, the celebration of Christmas was according to the origin of the settlers.
For example, English customs prevailed in Virginia, Maryland, and Georgia, where the Yule log tradition was faithfully observed.
As in England, while the Yule log was ablaze, a holiday was proclaimed and all work was suspended.
Old records make mention of Maryland and Virginia planters searching out the largest and most water-soaked logs they could find for the Yule in order to extend the period of festivity as long as possible.
Dutch, German, and Swedish customs were observed in New York, New Jersey, and Delaware, bringing into this country the traditions that had been observed since the time the Vikings were Christianized.
There are old accounts of the straw goat custom in colonial America.
This peculiar Swedish custom originated in an ancient pagan symbol of fertility.
The goats were formally made from the last sheaf of straw harvested.
Which was supposed to possess special power because the spirit of the seed lived in the last sheaf.
The Quakers of Philadelphia did not observe Christmas except in a strictly religious manner.
The Puritans brought with them from Cromwellian England the prohibition of Christmas celebration, and this philosophy continued in New England for generations.
In 1659, the following law was passed by Massachusetts, Whosoever shall be found observing any such days as Christmas or the like, either by forbearing of labor, feasting, or in any other way, shall be fined five shillings."
This law was not repealed until 1681, and Christmas did not become a legal holiday until the middle of the 19th century.
During the early colonial period, early attempts were made by missionary priests to Christianize the Native American tribes living in North America.
These attempts were a classic replay of the intermixing of paganism and Christianity that we observed in the first four centuries after Christ and to the present day.
there are several Indian Christmas carols that are still sung that reflect this strange mixture.
The most well-known being the Huron Indian Carol, in which the mighty Geechee Manitou,
the Huron Great Spirit God, is said to have sent angel choirs to announce the birth of Christ.
🎵Huron Indian Carol🎵 I am a woman with her child, when all the earth has fled,
that mighty Geechee Manitou sent angel choirs and said, Before they're like the stars to him that's on the other side of the hill.
He does your being import.
He does import.
The end.
The end.
I've done the wrong one.
Oh, come, oh come, Lord Jesus Christ, come and heal our souls.
Heal our souls, heal our souls, heal our souls.
When we continue our study of the carols and customs of Christmas, in the next episode
of the Hour of the Charm, we will leap into the wassailing, caroling, gaming, jigging,
and general gluttony of the seasons, and the good fortune and prosperity such rituals were
supposed to ensure.
Until then, may God bless you abundantly with his peace and health.
Amen.
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