Shrine of Luonnotar

As summer and fall cycle past for yet another year and snow begins to cover the landscape, our thoughts turn to that joyous time of the year when peace and good will towards men becomes the order of the day – at least on the philosophical if not the practical level. For many the Season will begin in November as companies, family and friends gather for pikkujoulu (Little Christmas) celebrations. On December 9^th, those with deeper traditional roots will bake the Christmas Bread or make a special trip to the bakery to buy the Seasonal delight. Our homes are rearranged to accommodate a pine tree, which has been sacrificed to add that extra festive atmosphere by decorating it with various ornamentations, some of which have been formed from straw.

And then the 24^th of December arrives. This is the day that Finns will make merry. For most of the world, festivities will have to wait until the following morning. Morning will find a larger than average congregation at the various churches around cities, towns and villages. In the afternoon, families will travel to the graveyards where the bodies of their loved ones who have passed over lay blanketed by earth and a mantle of white snow. They will come to light and place a candle at the graves in honor and memorial. After the solemn duty is performed they will return to their homes and feast on the Christmas Ham with all the traditional trimmings of various laatikot[1], fish, etc. And then, with bellies full, Santa Claus will make his appearance. Unlike the clandestine visit received by children around the world, Santa Claus will actually appear at the child’s door and distribute the gifts to one and all. But the Season joy will not end until the Christmas Sauna has been taken, bringing a calming end to the activities of the day.

This brief overview of a typical Finnish Christmas has wrapped up within its colored paper and silky ribbon and bows mysterious traditions of a time long past: a past that seems like a dark cave that leads back into darker and murkier depths. So much of pre-Christian Finnish history has been lost, and what little we do know is more likely to come from other sources than the Finns themselves. The problem centers upon the fact that the Finnish language was not put into a written form until 1543 by Mikael Agricola.[2] In light of this fact, much study has been done regarding the shamanistic cultures still found in Finland, Sweden and Russia to this day. It is believed that the pre-Christian population had a very similar religious structure. It is within this framework that we will continue our study.

Pre-Christian Theology in Finland

So what did the pre-Christian Finns believe when it came to the Gods? As in most Shamanistic cultures they believed that every thing contained its own spirit. Whether it is the rock used to build a foundation, a tree used to heat the dwelling, the bear[3] that slept away the winter, or the human being. Over time names were given to these various spirits and they became the gods, goddesses and demons[4] of Finnish mythology.

It is also important to note that nearly universally all religions are a form of Sun worship. The genealogies of Sun worship can be traced backed to a single source: the earliest know civilization of Sumer. From there, as people began to move out across the earth, the basic theology remained while the names of the deities were changed. The Sun is seen as masculine (the God) and the moon as feminine (the Goddess) in all but two cultures that I am aware. The two that deviate from this ‘norm’ are Japan and Finland. Just how this divergence came to be, I do not know, but it comes to bear in the execution of how Christmas is today celebrated in Finland.

Perhaps the first question that would spring to mind is why is Christmas observed in the middle of winter and not the spring? The biblical narrative would seem to suggest that Jesus was born at a time when the “shepherd’s were abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night”[5]. This would not be a winter activity, so, why December 25th?

Again, we must turn to the religion of the Sun, and remember that it is allegorical of the God. At the time of harvest great celebrations were held to offer thanks for a plentiful year and to offer sacrifices in hopes for a good harvest the following year. The celebrations were marked by the Autumn Equinox, which brought with it the shortening of days. This meant that the Sun would begin to shed its light less and less and darkness would take over more of the day. To the pre-Christian peoples this marked the dying days of their God. The Celts called this celebration Samhain.[6] This day continues to be celebrated in various cultures even in our modern world. In the United States the day is called Halloween (October 31^st), but the real day of celebration is the now Christianized All Saint’s Day observed on November 1^st. The Finns also celebrated this feast, but they called it Kekri.

But what, you may be asking, does this have to do with Finnish Christmas? Everything! Remember I told you that to the Finns the Sun was feminine and not masculine? But the date of Christmas is a masculine time of year. So the traditions handed down could not come from the normal practices of a culture that saw the Sun as feminine. To cultures with a masculine Sun, the time right before December 25^th held great metaphorical meaning for it was the time that the Sun would finally die. On or about December 21^st of every year, a strange and wonderful event takes place in the heavens. It is called the Winter Solstice (Winter Equinox or Yule). From December 21^st until the 24^th darkness will rule because the God has died. The metaphor of the God’s death is found in the fact that the Sun appears not to move during this three-day period. But, gloriously, on the 25^th the Sun again begins to move appearing 1 degree northward: the Sun has been REBORN.

But to discover the ‘Christian’ origins of the date we must travel to Rome in the year 325 AD and the Council of Nicea. It was at this council, called by Constantine[7] – a Sun worshipping emperor of Rome – that the Roman Catholic Church was officially made the State Religion, the Bible that you read today was compiled (while the books not deemed necessary by the Church were destroyed). It was shortly after this time that the Church officially adopted the date of December 25^th. A Roman Church, sitting at the heart of Rome chose the date of the Roman Sun Festival Saturnalia. The birth of the Roman Sun had become the date for the Son of Man.

As I have demonstrated, Christmas is solely a construct of the Roman Catholic Church; however, there are traditions practiced in Finland that are uniquely Finnish. Having no formal Winter Solstice celebrations, the Finns did what they could. They moved the traditions of the outlawed pagan rites of Kekri[8] and made them the central attractions of the Yule season. Let’s move on to explaining the origins of some of the most obvious traditions still practiced in Finland today.

Joulu

The word for Christmas in Finnish is Joulu and is borrowed from the Swedish Yule. It is no surprise that the word should be borrowed as no Winter Solstice celebrations were performed.

Straw

Straw is perhaps one of the first direct clues to the Christmas’ Kekri origins. Wheat, hay, straw, anything taken from the fields was seen as metaphorical of the dying God. As the days became shorter and colder, the crops were harvested, essentially killing them since they were broken off from the life source. Decorations would be made from straw as representations of the God and displayed around the home to ensure Its continuing presence. Sheaves would be erected and burned in the fields as a magickal offering to ensure that next year’s crop would be successful. Today straw remains an important decoration for the home: straw pigs, straw goats (we’ll have more to say about this later) straw decorations for the tree, and even straw stars. Keep in mind what a star really is . . . a SUN.

Christmas Bread

Once again we will find the God being honored. At Kekri two special loaves of dark, syrupy bread would be baked from the wheat gathered at harvest. The dough would be formed into a shape resembling a human face than baked. One loaf would be eaten during the feast days, while the other was place on the table and left uneaten. After the celebration ended it was placed into the wheat bin to magickally ensure enough wheat for the winter months. At the time of the spring planting it was again brought to the table, but this time it was eaten.

Today Christmas Bread is traditional reserved for December 9^th, and the human face has been replaced with stars/suns.

The idea of ‘taking the God into oneself’ by eating the bread can also be found in the Christian tradition of the Roman Catholic Eucharist and the Protestant observance of Communion.

Graveyard Visitations

It became vogue to place a candle on the graves of fallen soldiers after the Second World War, but this was not the beginning of the tradition, it simply moved from the household to the graveyard.

Ancestor worship was and is strongly practiced in Shamanistic cultures, where fires would be built to honor the dead. The candle and the eternal flame remains a symbol of endurance and memorial.[9] Roman Catholics practice the lighting of candles as well. But why a flame? Fire represents Spirit: living Spirit. The flame is metaphorical of eternal life.

But more than a candle being lit was done to honor the ancestors in the Finnish home. On Christmas Eve, the food from the feast was left on the table overnight so that family members who had already passed over could drop by and partake of the Seasonal delights. This tradition is probably not seen much anymore in its original sense. Today, as in the United States, milk and cookies (or some other treat) is left for the elves: the lingering remains of those who have come before us.

Christmas Ham

I must admit that Christmas ham has always amused me. If we remember that Jesus was born of Jewish heritage, it is no stretch of the imagination to find that the eating of pork is also of pre-Christian extract. I read an humorous Christian Tradition that states that ham is served because a pig prodded at the young Infant Jesus while he lay in his manager, but what a pig would be doing in a Jewish stable is beyond me.

The truth of the matter is much more simple and convincing. The pig in many cultures was/is another metaphor of the God[10]. The Finnish pre-Christian culture borrowed heavily from other Scandinavian cultures, and the adoption of Odin into its pantheon of Deities is no surprise. Odin is said to have had a pig named Särimner, which was boiled and eaten every night. However, every morning the pig was reborn. Again we see the death and resurrection motif of the God being played out as we cut our slice of Christmas ham. Remember that straw pig we mentioned earlier? Suddenly that bit of straw has given us a duel meaning that both lead back to the God.

And we close with the second most sacred of Christmas cows: Santa Claus. Any Finn will tell you that Finnish Lapland is the home of Santa Claus. This works well for tourism and the FinnAir logo, but actually Old Saint Nick has a bit shadier history, which finds its roots, once again, in the Kekri harvest celebration.

Most people are aware that the current image of a red and white suited Santa Claus was brought to us by the manufactures of Coca Cola. But before the soft drink company revamped Santa’s image to sell more sugar-water he was dressed in the grey skins of a goat and was often seen sporting a set of goat horns. The origins of Santa Claus are thus: the Kekri celebrations were a time of raunchy, carefree and wild activities. For one day, the role of master and servant would be exchanged, allowing the servants to live well for a day before returning to the hard way of life that they would surely face over the winter months. It was the custom for young men to dress up in goatskins and horns and go from house to house begging beer and treats. If no treats were forthcoming a trick or evil deed[11] would be played against the uncharitable soul. The daemon-god that these lads were emulating was Nuuttipukki (also known as Paha Nuutti). Nuuttipukki did not give gifts; he demanded gifts! As time moved on, Nuuttipukki evil side was Christianized and gradually replaced by a better nature and his name changed to Joulupukki. However, it took longer for his goatskin clothing and horns to disappear. Finns today still remember receiving Christmas cards bearing the image of Joulupukki with goatskin coat and horns.

The image of Nuuttipukki can be found decorating nearly every Finnish home during the Yule season in the form of a straw goat: once again connecting the season to the Dying God of Kekri.

Traditions

Traditions are a funny thing. We all know about them, but very few know the origins or reasons for the Season. Our ancestors have handed them down to us because they had been handed down to them. Mostly likely, you have passed or will be passing these very traditions down to your children. I certainly hope so. Traditions are the Eternal Flames that connect and bind one generation to the next. They give us personality, identity and connection to our culture. It is sad to see so much of the Yule time season being over run with American thinking about the holiday. One should stop to consider that America borrowed nearly all of its Christmas traditions from you - the Europeans. Okay, so we gave you a red-suited Santa and guilt about not buying so-and-so a gift this year or one too few gifts for your children, but did you really need that? When the first colonies were built in the New World, the Puritan settlers were all too aware of its pagan origins. Almost immediately they outlawed the celebration of Christmas. Built on this foundation, the true essence of the Season was lost and turned the holiday into nothing more than an end of the year retail make-a-quick-buck scam. I hope these pages have given you a rather different vision of the holiday.

Rev. Magus
FirstDegree Priest, Correllian Tradition USA
Email comments to: [email protected]

End Notes:

[1] Directly translated as ‘boxes’. They are traditional ways of preparing various vegetables – rutabaga, carrot and potato are most common – as casseroles. They are generally served in the tin boxes in which they were prepared.

[2]See http://virtual.finland.fi/netcomm/news/showarticle.asp?intNWSAID=25911

[3] The bear is a very strong allegory of the God. The long hibernation of the bear was metaphorical of the death of the God, while the bear awaking from its slumber represented the rebirth of the God.

[4] It should be noted that these ‘demons’ bear no real similarity to the Christian concept of demons; although, as a means of stamping out the Old Religions the Church ‘Christianized’ them and made them part of Satan’s legions.

[5] Luke 2:8

[6] Pronounced ‘Sow-hein’.

[7] Constantine was a follow of the Sun God Mithra, and during the Winter Solstice was worshipped as the physical manifestation of the Sun. If you were to compare the tenets of Mithraism with those of Christianity, you may be very surprised to find the alarming number of parallels. The Roman Catholic headquarter city, The Vatican, sits over the site on which the Temple of Mithra once stood.

[8] It may be of interest to note that since November no longer had a holiday, Father’s Day was given its rightful spot within the month. Is it purely coincidence that Father’s Day should fall within the month that had been early reserved for honoring the God? Keep in mind that American’s celebrate Father’s Day in June, and the holiday originated in the United States.

[9] Consider the Eternal Flames erected to United States President John F. Kennedy and British Royal Lady Diana; only two examples among many.

[10] See http://www.storm-ina-teacup.com/pigmyth.html for a listing of pig representing both Masculine and Feminine Deities.

[11] It should be remembered that Kekri was the harvest celebration that corresponds with Samhain (Halloween). In the United States every October 31^st, children dress as their favorite character – good or evil – and travel from house to house demanding a trick or treat.