The celebration of Christmas is beautiful in
Europe. The Christmas period is considered to be the most wonderful
time of the season. The festive season in Great Britain begins well
before Christmas. Christmas in England began in 596 AD, when St
Augustine landed on her shores with monks who wanted to bring
Christianity to the Anglo Saxons. In England the day after Christmas
is called Boxing Day because boys used to go round collecting money
in clay boxes. When the boxes were full, they broke them open.
Christmas is that time of the year when everybody wants to forget
everything and only wants to enjoy. The Christmas dinner is usually
taken at midday on 25th December during daylight. The English gift
giver is called Father Christmas. It is believed that Father
Christmas delivers the gifts during the night before Christmas. The
children leave empty stockings or pillowcase the night before
Christmas with the hope that it will be full of present the next
day. The traditional dinner in England consists of roasted turkey
with vegetables and sauces. For dessert they have rich, fruity
Christmas pudding with brandy sauce.
In England they also have the tradition to elect Boy Bishops in
commemoration of St. Nicholas love for children. These bishops
perform various duties except delivering the Mass. The English
enjoys good Christmas music. They love to hear beautiful Christmas
carols during the festive season. Sending of greeting cards to the
near and dear ones is also a custom, which is followed, along with
decorating your house for the festive occasion. Some churches in
Great Britain have a Christingle service on the fourth Sunday of
Advent. The carol service is of Scandinavian origin where every
child receives an orange and candle wrapped in a red ribbon. The
candle signifies Jesus and the ribbon stands for Christ's blood and
the love of God embracing and protecting the world. Preparation for
the festival begins well before Christmas. Even the youngest member
of the family is busy taking part in the festive preparation.
