History of Christmas Wreaths |
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Christmas Wreaths are visible everywhere in the month of December. The Christmas wreaths are usually crafted in the form of a circle which symbolizes eternity and are hung on the front door of a house. The idea to hang them on the front door lies in the belief that round shaped Christmas wreaths bring contentment and good luck in the approaching year. Most wreaths are embellished with candles symbolizing the sun at winter solstice, and with evergreens, red berries, holly and pine cones to signify the harvest, a custom thought to have started in ancient Rome. |
Back in ancient Rome, people hung wreaths as a sign of victory. Many people believe that this is where the hanging of wreaths on doors came from. Some wreaths are made for crafts, others for purely decoration, and yet others connote some deeper meanings. DGreetings presents to you the history of Wreaths, so settle in and explore the world of Christmas traditions.
There are many types of wreaths. The most popular is the Advent wreath. The beginnings of the Advent wreath can be traced back to the folk practices of the pre-Christian Germanic folks who, during the cold darkness of winter, gathered wreaths of evergreen and lighted fires as symbols of good luck and happiness in a coming spring and renewed light. The Christian community kept these age old traditions alive, and by the 16th century Catholics and Protestants throughout Germany used wreaths to commemorate their Advent hope in Christ, the everlasting Light. From Germany, the popularity of the Advent wreath gripped the other parts of the Christian world too. Traditionally, the wreath is crafted with four candles in a circle of evergreens with a fifth candle in the middle. Traditionally, Three candles are violet and the fourth is rose. Each day at every household the candles are lighted, one candle on the first week, and then another each succeeding week until December 25th. While lighting each candle, prayers are sung. The lighting of the middle candle that is the last to be lighted takes place on Christmas Eve. It signifies the birth of Jesus Christ.
DGreetings also offers information on various Christmas Wreaths.
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