Sunday, December 25, 2011

Winter Dec. 25

The departure of the time when frost-on-the-pumpkin crosses over to frost-on-the-pine cone invokes thoughts of biblical references to seeds / seedlings, and how the gospel of Jesus Christ may have affected the culture of cold climate communities in the coniferous forests of Northern Europe. Pagan customs associated with winter-solstace activities suggest that these  bountiful arbolic inhabitants lacing the valleys and hillsides were religiously revered, as were the mammals and fish in sustaining their lives during the pre-Christian eras.

It's fascinating how the Christmas tree, juxtaposed to the dreidel, has endured in the Judaic-Christian tradition. Its symbolism of survival in the depths of Winter has become a cultural mainstay far from Rome, Constaninople, or even Bethlehem.

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