christmas customs in_romania

April 18, 2023 1

What are we going to be

studying today?

April 18, 2023 2

1. Watch the following video clip

2. From this, what do you expect this new topic to be?

Activity 1

Christmas Customs in Romania

April 18, 2023 Christmas Customs in Romania 3


to identify the deeper meaning of

Christmas

to give examples of Christmas customs

in Romania

Today we will learn:


In groups, think of as many

words/phrases/sentences that you relate to the

word

CHRISTMAS

You have two minutes!


1. What do Christians

believe about

Christmas?


Write a paragraph about the Christmas

story using the following words:

Virgin Mary, Bethlehem, the

shepherds, angels, the stable, the

Wise Men (Kings), the star, the Son

of God


Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Jesus is the Son of God and He is both fully human and

fully God.

Jesus came to be a Saviour for humanity.

The birth of Jesus is "good news" for all people.


2. Christmas customs in Romania


Romanians have many Christmas traditions which are unique to

them

Christmas is generally considered the second most important

religious Romanian holiday after Easter

The Christmas and holiday season starts officially on November

30, on Saint Andrew's day and ends on January 7, with the

celebration of Saint John the Baptist

Christmas season


In Romania, Christmas begins with fasting which takes six weeks (from November 15th to December 24th)

Fasting from foods is intended as spiritual preparation for an experience of deeper communion with God. Fasting and prayer make us more sensitive to God's personal presence

Spiritual preparation


On December 5 the Christmas lights are turned on

all over the streets

The houses are beautifully decorated, perfectly

clean and ready to receive the carol-singers

The Christmas lights


The fir tree - as the tree that needs to be

decorated before the birth of Jesus - was

chosen because it remains green all the

year

It symbolizes Christ, forever alive

The custom in Romania is to decorate the

tree on Christmas Eve, the 24th of

December

Christmas tree


On Christmas Eve or the day

before, the local priest will come

along with a Nativity icon and

bless the house, the people living

in it and the food

Nativity icon


Christmas dinner in

Romania is a rich, multi-

course meal

All the members of the

extended family enjoy the

feast together

Christmas dinner


On Christmas Day, all the family goes to church to

attend the Christmas religious service

They return cheerful to their homes and give alms

(food given to the poor)

Christmas religious service


Gift exchanges take place in Romania in the

evening of Christmas Eve (as a reminder of God

giving the world the greatest gift: His Son)

Romanian children believe that 'Mos Craciun' (the

Romanian Santa Claus) is the one who delivers

them their presents

In the morning the first who wake up are the

children to see the presents from Santa under the

tree

Gifts


The singing of carols is a very important part of Romanian

Christmas festivities.

Throughout the Christmas season, little Romanian children

(especially those in the villages) visit every house in the town

singing carols

The leader of the group carries a large wooden star with an image

of the Nativity posted in the centre of the star

This custom wants to remind us of the star which announced the

birth of Jesus Christ and guided The Three Kings

Carols


In return for such

performances, singers

receive apples, nuts,

traditional cakes ('cozonaci')

and sometimes even money

from each house


Many people think that by going from house to

house to sing carols (themselves or at least

someone from their family) they will be blessed

the whole year.

It is also said that if you receive carol singers the

year will be rich and the people from the house

will be healthy.


Carol-singers in action…

Christmas customs

Similarities

Romania/Irelan

d

Differences

Romania/

Ireland


For many Romanian Orthodox Christians, Christmas is a time

of reflection and renewal, of affirming the bonds of friendship

and family

Different people from different countries celebrate different

Christmas customs depending on their culture

The very core of Christmas is Jesus Christ Himself. Christmas is

His Birthday. All customs revolve around Him and should not

overshadow The Celebrated One (the customs are not more

important than the religious meaning and celebrations)

To conclude…


The Romanian traditional Christmas greeting is:

Craciun fericit!(Merry Christmas!)


Before you go, answer these questions...

1. One thing you know now that you did

not know before

2. The most important thing you learnt

3. Something that surprised you

christmas customs in_romania

Spiritual

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christmas day

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examples of christmas

christmas religious

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