Many people of faith find themselves drawn to light: A symbol of hope and comfort in difficult times. From the Scandinavian holiday of Santa Lucia and the Latin American commemoration of Las Posadas to the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah, these cultural festivities light up the darkest days of winter.
Saint Lucy’s Day
Historically falling on the winter solstice, Santa Lucia, or Saint Lucy’s Day, kicks off the Christmas season in Scandinavia with a festival of light.
Scandinavian homes are illuminated with candles for the Christmas season, says Kristina Feste-Hanson, director of the Scandinavian Alliance of Colorado, which celebrates the heritage of people from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland.
Celebrated on Dec. 13, Santa Lucia honors Saint Lucy, a 4th century Christian martyr who is said to have worn a candle-lit wreath upon her head while bringing food and aid to Christians hiding in the catacombs from Roman persecution.
Accounts vary of how the Italian saint’s story took hold in Scandinavia. One version tells of a winter famine that struck Sweden and the salvation of a well-lit ship that appeared on the horizon. Aboard was a young woman, dressed in all white, with a crown of light around her head. Legend says that woman was Lucy bearing food, light and hope.
At the time, Scandinavians would have associated the image with the pagan goddess Freya, a symbol of love and fertility, according to Feste-Hanson.
“Lucia or Freya emerging from the sea would be an indication of calm and light emerging from the darkness,” she says.
The first recorded depiction of the white-clad Saint Lucy in Sweden came many centuries later, in 1764, and larger-scale celebrations took hold by the 1900s. The symbolism of Lucy’s candle-lit wreath, illuminating the dark path forward, endures in modern tradition: In today’s celebrations, girls dressed as Saint Lucy don evergreen crowns lit with real candles, Feste-Hanson says.
In many Scandinavian homes, the oldest daughter will get an early start to the day, waking before the family to prepare sweet saffron buns, known in Sweden as Lussebullar. In honor of Saint Lucy, she wears a white dress with a red sash, symbolizing martyrdom, and the evergreen wreath upon her head.
Feste-Hanson has made the day into a special celebration each year with her 11-year-old daughter by hosting their own version of Santa Lucia at their home in Littleton.
“All her little friends come over for an afternoon and make their own crowns,” she says. “They bring their own white dress, and I have them paint an ornament for their parents.”
In church processions, little boys have the chance to participate by wearing conical hats adorned with golden stars. The tradition makes children the focus of yuletide cheer, Feste-Hanson says.
“Children are prioritized in Scandinavia in a big way. That comes from Viking times when everyone was expected to chip in,” she says. “This is an occasion [for children] to be a little independent and feel part of the community.”
Taste the Traditions
with these cultural recipes courtesy of Kayla Young
Lussebullar (Santa Lucia buns)
Makes 12 buns
Ingredients
1 cup milk
½ teaspoon saffron threads
2¼ teaspoon dry yeast
½ cup sugar
4 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ cup softened butter
2 eggs (1 for dough, 1 for glaze)
Raisins for garnish
DIRECTIONS
1. Warm milk gently, add saffron and
let steep for 10 minutes.
2. Cool to lukewarm. Stir in yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let sit until foamy (about 5 minutes).
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, remaining sugar, salt and cardamom.
4. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the milk mixture, 1 egg and butter. Mix into a soft dough.
5. Knead on a floured surface for 8-10 minutes until smooth.
6. Place dough in a bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size (about 1 hour).
7. Divide into 12 pieces, roll each into a rope and shape into an “S.”
8. Place on a baking sheet and add raisins to the curls.
9. Brush with beaten egg and bake at 400°F for 12-15 minutes.
Las Posadas
The Latin American tradition of Las Posadas, celebrated primarily in Mexico and Central America, has given life to the Christmas nativity story for more than 400 years. Traditionally celebrated for nine days, between Dec. 16 and 24, Las Posadas recreates the story of Mary, Joseph and the birth of Jesus Christ.
“Asking for ‘posadas’ is asking for shelter,” says Betty Aragon-Mitotes, director of Mujeres de Colores, a Fort Collins-based nonprofit that hosts an annual Las Posadas celebration to gather gifts, warm winter clothes and food for families in need.
With origins in Spain, the Las Posadas tradition takes its followers dressed as Mary and Joseph door to door in search of lodging. Fellow faithfuls carry candles to light the way. At each home, participants come together in prayer and to sing carols.
On the final night, the procession secures “shelter,” often at a host church, for a community celebration. This year’s gathering will take place at a monument, The Hand that Feeds, on the corner of Sugar Beet Park in Fort Collins.
Mujeres de Colores incorporates the spirit of giving by distributing donated backpacks, school supplies, winter coats, Christmas gifts and other items throughout the evening. The organization collects donations throughout the year—including essential toiletry items, like toothpaste and shampoo—as well as gift cards for grocery shopping.
“We rally around people who are in need of help,” Aragon-Mitotes says. “That’s what community does.”
One of the highlights of the celebration, of course, is the food. Beef and pork tamales are a Christmas staple, Aragon-Mitotes says, and sharing them with the community is just another way to embrace the season’s charitable spirit.
“It’s a big celebration of baby Jesus, and then you have tamales and Mexican hot chocolate and Christmas carols in English and Spanish,” she says. “It’s a time for community to just kind of take a breath, step back from all the hustle and bustle and remember what the true meaning of Christmas is.”
Taste the Traditions
with these cultural recipes courtesy of Kayla Young
Spicy Hot Chocolate
(different variations are served during Las Posadas)
Ingredients
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of cayenne
2 ounces chopped dark chocolate
whipped cream
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat milk, cocoa powder, sugar, cinnamon and cayenne. Stir until smooth.
2. Add chopped dark chocolate and whisk until melted and frothy.
3. Pour into mugs and top with whipped cream or cinnamon. Serve warm.
Hanukkah
The eight-day celebration of Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights or the Festival of Rededication, dates back to second-century B.C. and the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem by the Maccabees after its desecration by the Syrian Greeks. Now it’s marked by time with friends, family and fried foods.
“ There’s a legend that in rededicating the temple, there was an oil lamp and sacred special oil,” says Jerry Metz, a board member of the Beth Israel synagogue in Greeley. “They only had one day’s worth of oil, and it miraculously lasted for eight days.”
In modern times, that miracle of the oil lamp’s enduring flame is commemorated through the menorah displaying nine candles, one for each of the eight nights and a ninth to light the other candles.
“It’s a quick little family ceremony, and there are short Hebrew blessings done before lighting the candle,” Metz says, adding that the menorah is typically displayed in a window.
The light of the menorah serves as a symbol of hope and resilience in times of darkness. The celebration, happening this year from Dec. 14-22, has come to include gift giving, “ given that it occurs around the time of another December major holiday,” Metz says.
His favorite part, however, is the fried foods—a nod to the temple’s miraculous oil—including latkes, a type of potato pancake.
“The big controversy is, do you eat your latkes with applesauce or with sour cream?” he says.
Metz will have the chance to engage this debate in a taste test this year at his synagogue, where community members will each bring their homemade version of latkes and compare recipes.
Taste the Traditions
with these cultural recipes courtesy of Kayla Young
Latkes (Potato Pancakes)
Makes about 12 latkes
Ingredients
4 medium potatoes
1 small onion
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
Vegetable oil for frying
Apple sauce or sour cream, to serve
DIRECTIONS
1. Peel and coarsely grate the potatoes and onion.
2. Place grated vegetables into a clean tea towel and squeeze firmly to remove as much liquid as possible.
3. Transfer to a bowl. Add the beaten egg, flour, salt and pepper and mix until combined.
4. Pour vegetable oil into a frying pan to a depth of about ¼ inch and heat over medium-high.
5. Drop tablespoons of the mixture into the pan, flattening each into a patty with a spatula.
6. Fry for 3-4 minutes per side until crisp and golden.
7. Drain on kitchen paper.
8. Serve hot with applesauce or sour cream.
