Christmas Church Services
Did your family attend religious services during the Christmas season? What were the customs and traditions involved?
This is a beautiful nativity set I purchased a few years ago.
I've always wanted a nice one with all the traditional "players,"
and this was just perfect!
Because my parents were ministers for many years, every Christmas of my childhood was connected with church, and I grew up knowing the "reason for the season."
My very earliest Christmas church memory was of when I was not quite three years old, Christmas 1969. My mother wrote to her parents:
The Christmas program was held this morning at the Annette Protestant Chapel [at Annette Coast Guard Base in Southeast Alaska]. Miriam was one of 3 little angels and the smallest one; as she went out after singing her song, her halo and wings fell off! Bryan and I had a hard time to keep from laughing.
We angels had a song to sing and I used to remember what it was, but can't now for the life of me! I want to say it was "Angels We Have Heard On High," but I know that is not right. Too bad Mom didn't write down what it was!
As I got older, I loved to be in Christmas pageants that were held almost every year at The Salvation Army church I grew up in, and liked playing the part of Mary or the Angel.
One of the things we did after my brother was born was to have a birthday cake at home for the Baby Jesus as part of our Christmas celebration. Part of the reason of celebrating St. Nicholas Day was to have the emphasis on gifts be on a different day than the spiritual celebration.
For awhile we attended a Presbyterian church and we always had advent candles lit, another tradition I enjoy.
After we moved to Washington and I was a teen, we often attended Midnight Mass with our neighbor. I've always loved going to church around Christmas!
This post is a part of the "Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories" meme created in 2007 by Thomas and Jasia. You, too, can write your own Christmas memories, either for your personal journal or blog. Visit Geneabloggers to participate and to read others' posts on these topics.
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