Celebrating Christmas as a Pagan
With Christmas right around the corner it can be a confusing and isolating time for some pagans especially those that are new to their path. Many feel they can’t celebrate Christmas with their loved ones and nothing could be further from the truth. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not the Pagan police, nor am I the Christmas police. I am simply reaching out to anyone who has feelings of confusion over whether or not they can or should celebrate with their loved ones despite having a different belief
system to them. The decision to celebrate or not is a deeply personal one and needs to be made by each individual based on their own thoughts, feelings, and beliefs.
Without trying to get into a debate about the origins of Christmas – let’s face it there are enough articles and memes out there on the subject already – I think it’s fair to say that there are enough common elements between Christmas and Yule that it’s not too far a stretch of the imagination to make it a two-for-one celebration for those living in the Northern Hemisphere. If, however, like me, you live in the southern hemisphere and are celebrating Litha at this time of year you may prefer to celebrate what I like to consider the spirit of the season – the family time, the love, and, of course, the food. If you’re struggling to find your feet this jolly season here are a few ideas to inspire you.
Decorate your home
I’ve always found that filling my home with decorations never fails to put me in a festive mood. Whether you choose to use elements of the solstices or more traditional symbols of Christmas (admittedly the line between the two is very fuzzy) is entirely up to you and your beliefs. If you are more inclined towards a nature based celebration, bringing nature into your home in the form of flowers and plants can be a great alternative to the usual decorations used at this time of year.
Volunteer your time
If you want to move away from the more traditional Christmassy celebrations, volunteering your time to those in need is a great way to celebrate the spirit of the season. If you are a people person, helping the homeless by gathering or distributing hampers, or spending time working in a soup kitchen is never time wasted. If, however, you are looking for a less people oriented way to share the love I suggest approaching one of your local animal rescue groups and either volunteering some time in their shelter or, if you have space in your home, offering to give one of the shelter animals a home for the holidays so that they have a much needed break from the shelter
environmental and are given the chance to spend the holidays surrounded by a family.
Crank the tunes and get those movies rolling
Some may disagree with me but two of my favourite things about the silly season are the songs and the movies. In my opinion some of the best (and most likely to get stuck in your head) songs are only considered socially acceptable after the first of December. The majority of the Christmas movies I’ve watched over the years have been magical feel good films that never fail to bring a smile to my face and warmth to my heart.
Feast with your family
I’m a big foodie and never pass up the opportunity to share a meal with my loved ones. Many pagan celebrations centre around the bounty given by Mother Earth (or whichever deity you follow) and what better way to enjoy that offering by incorporating it into a large multi-faith meal with those you love most in the world. If you like to practice kitchen magic this is a great opportunity to put your skills to use cooking up some magical dishes to share.
No matter whether you choose to celebrate this time with your loved ones or not I hope you have a fabulous end to the year and a joyous start to the new, and may all your magical workings be blessed.
Love, Anne x
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