My son and I finally finished decorating our yule log. It's helpful for me to remember that the old heathen yule was celebrated on the first full moon after the first New Moon after the winter solstice (which this year is 25 Jan I think), so I'm not really behind but squarely in the thick of yuletide.
As Rune from Nordic #Animism writes "The implementation of the solar calendar as well as the Christian Christmas have made practices move, notably, so the centre of gravity of #Yule has moved closer to the Winter Solstice. However, many of the processions and drinking traditions from the January period may have originated in the Heathen Yule celebration on this first Full Moon of the year. It makes sense, however, to see Yule as a period of ongoing celebration rather than one point in the year."
I think #Yule should involve celebrating food and recipes learned from other cultures, such as Ma Po Tofu. But really I'll take any excuse to eat Ma Po Tofu.
Nigella Lawson's Italian Pudding Cake is the most sublime thing for Yule dinner dessert. I made a gluten free version for my daughter with trepidation, not knowing if it would even be good. According to her (and she's tried EVERYTHING) it turned out perfect. So below is the original recipe from Nigella's site. The filling is always more than enough so I had plenty for a gluten free version. I made a President's Choice (from real canadian wholesale) yellow gluten free cake mix using sunflower oil instead of butter (because it was handy) I chopped up about 1/2 a cup of red glace cherries and added to the dry mix before mixing it up with the oil, eggs and water. I used a cake pan sized cast iron skillet oiled and with a bit of baking paper on the bottom. Bake for 40 min. at 325. I cut it horizontally in half to make 2 layers when it was cool. Instead of using a spring form pan for this one, I just assembled it on a plate with 2 layers with filling and pom seeds on both layers.
For the reg. cake I followed the instructions except I did not have pistachios so left them out. I used organic cane sugar instead of castor sugar, Port instead of the Tuaca and Marsala, and this year left out the chocolate chips because I think they are too crunchy. The pomegranate seeds are so perfect with this. All other ingredients and amounts are the same. It truly is worth trying if you want an easy splurge as this is even better made the day before and left in the fridge or in my case on the veranda in the cold. Try it for New Year's eve!
"Our thoughts are with those among the dead into whose sphere we are rising, or who are now rising into our own. Others we inevitably forget, though they be brothers and sisters. Thus the departed may be nearer to us than when they were present. At death our friends and relations either draw nearer to us and are found out, or depart further from us and are forgotten. Friends are as often brought nearer together as separated by death."
In Norway food and beer would be left on the table for dead relatives and in Sweden... a bowl of #Yule beer was placed on a chair in the middle of the floor. Cubes of bread would be put into this beer and a Yule candle placed so as to illuminate it through the entire night of Yule. This central blessing of light given to the essences of the earth's life force in the darkness of winter would then be given to the animals or poured on the earth in the Yule morning.—The Nordic Animist Year #animism
This is a song written for Mōdraniht -- Celebrated on or around the 25th December in honour of the three great mother goddesses -- Frigg, Hreða and Éostre.
The good thing about having family and friends that celebrate #Yule and #Christmas respectively is that my celebration is broken down into 2 groups separated by a few days. A bit of time to breathe in and breathe out.
I know I’ve quiet, but I’ve been working on a concept album for the magic year for the Jutish / Anglo / Saxon people. I have just finished the music for Mōdraniht — Mother’s Night (tonight) where we celebrate the great mother goddesses: Frigg, Hreða and Éostre.
What #ChristmasMusic do folks in the Fediverse listen to during these festive times? I'm interested in listening to more Christmas music that isn’t part of the American Christmas music canon. My family would listen to Christmas Revels CDs that drew mostly upon earlier British #Christmas (and #Solstice and #Yule) music.
Please tell me about your Christmas music traditions. I'm looking to expand my holiday playlist!
#Christmas vs #Yuletide
Many (most?) people who celebrate the third week of December with masses of food & presents are in fact celebrating Yuletide or #Chanukah rather than the birth of Christ.
Does anyone else think it is time to hive off Yuletide? - for one thing, the celebration of Christmas rightly begins on Christmas Eve after a month of fasting during Advent, and only ends on February 2nd with #Candlemas. (Or, if you prefer, #Groundhog Day)
The impetus for reasserting '#Yuletide' in the middle of the Xmas season (with only a small percentage of the population worshiping Christ) is that in the northern Atlantic (broadly) people do not offer each other #Christmas but Jul (ie #Yule) wishes:
Danish: God jul
Estonian: Haid joule (umlaut on 'o')
Faroese: Gledilg jol
Finnish: Hauska joulua
Greenlandic: Juullimi pilluarit
Icelandic: Gledileg jol
Norwegian/Swedish: God jul
Some of us have gone numb and non-functional; others are deep in the season and lighting candles, decorating trees, celebrating the return of the Sun, and practicing so many other traditions and acts of faith and love that this writer cannot name them all. I, myself, am holding space in the in-between this year.
So even though a few days ago I was extremely pissed off at the christians for being obnoxious I have seen this year way more winter solstice and Yuletide merriment and blessings of a good winter solstice or good Yuletide and to me that is so heartwarming and hopeful. When I was on fascist book I was seeing so many posts from so many different places all wishing people a wonderful Winter Solstice and Mary Yuletide and showing off like all sorts of things and ways to celebrate and it really warmed my heart.
So even though I saw some crazy christian bullshit about put christ in christmas and down with pagans and no Pagan celebration here and christ is the reason for the season and we are beating the heathens and all that other bullshit, the truth of the matter is is they're not winning.
Statistically in America their numbers have dropped drastically in the last two decades and are expected to be below 50% in less than 30 years. My fingers are crossed that it's even less than that. But then on top of that we have a reported 1.5 million pagans in America and that is only those who are admitting it. There is a statistical average that says if one person voices their opinion there are 20,000 others who agree who don't speak up. So that's 1.5 million * 20,000. And even though that isn't much compared to the 300 million Americans. It's definitely growing. And it brings me great joy to see our people finally blossoming. Finally taking back their rightful place in the history books. I hope to one day see a world where there are more Pagans than christians. #TakeBackWinterSolstice just might be a movement that helps that happen. Spreading the fact that you can celebrate exactly the same way only 4 days earlier and not have any of the religious bullshit and or nonsense with it, really could help push us forward. For now I'm just happy to see tons and tons of posts of people wishing people a happy Winter Solstice a merry Yuletide night. It warms my heart and gives me hope. #witches#WinterSolstice#pagan#yule#Yuletide#joy#celebrate#HappyHolidays#love#winning
The hidden folk at #Yuletide. I retell two related #folktales and speculate about what they say about contemporary society.
I recorded the episode and mentioned the then current state of the pending #VolcanicEruption in #Iceland. While I was doing so, an eruption started. I added a note on this before I uploaded it to Patreon. Now that I am releasing it for everyone, the eruption seems to be over.
Have I complained about what I consider a logical inconsistency with the myth of the Holly King and the Oak King on here yet?
Well, here it is anyway.
The myth usually goes that on the Winter Solstice the Holly King and the Oak King fight and the Oak King defeats the Holly King and rules until the Summer Solstice when they fight again and the Holly King takes over.
But Winter Solstice is when the Holly King is at the height of his power! It's the longest night of the year! They should fight on the equinoxes when the balance of light and dark actually shifts!
/EndRant
Anyway, have a blessed Yule. Hail to the Sun Child. Hail the return of the light.
Yule is come! Hail the Sun's rebirth! Welcome the new year! We are halfway out of the dark. May we kindle our inner lights into a renewed intent to honor the return of light (Sun or Son). May each of us BE a light in the world. 🕯️☀️
Over the next few days, many of us pagans will be celebrating Yule. I get asked how I celebrate all the time, because strangers ask what you're doing for Christmas to make small talk. When I answer that I don't celebrate, either they look at me like I just said I eat children, or they ask questions.
So I've written out my own practice here to maybe inspire other pagans, or to teach nonpagans that our holidays look a lot like theirs- family, gifts, feasts, etc.