Katrien Vander Straeten's Blog
Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten
A chat with a Belgian friend ended in his rant against an American Icon: that develish Santa Claus!
Europeans really seem to have a problem with Santa. In my article this week, "Santa Claus Go Home", I list some of their reasons.
But I also indicate that Santa-hatred is just one example of the ambivalence of many Europeans towards American icons and products. They curse them but at the same time buy them, use them, enjoy them.
I would love to start a discussion on this topic. If you have any comments, protests, or examples of this, let us know!
Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten
Many festivals and holidays, especially those of the large organized religions, commemorate (putative) historical events.
But what if these are shrouded in the mists of time? If there are no documented sources, or only conflicting ones, about the year or time of year of the event?
Almost universally a time will still be assigned, simply because we need to celebrate on particular days, usually on the same day each and every year.
That first Christmas is one of those events. Most people accept that Jesus was a real, historical person: they do not question his "historicity". But the exact date when he was born is controversial matter.
This week I published two articles on the matter:
- on dating the year of Christ's birth,
- on what time of year he was born.
Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten
Every year around this time shopkeepers do magic: in the span of an evening, the Halloween costumes are whisked away and all the Christmas paraphernalia take their stead.
So even though we still have Thanksgiving ahead of us, Christmas is already on everyone's mind.
What with all the many events related to that first Christmas, do you get confused about what happened when? In my article this week I lay it all out for you in a detailed timeline.
The article only lists the events and the Feasts that celebrate them, but I have some articles in the making that will give more details, so come back soon!
Episodes so far:
Also:
- Dating the Year of Jesus’ Birth
- Dating the Time of Year of Christ's Birth
Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten
I wholeheartedly recommend yougo and read Devorah Stone's interview with me about Saint Nicholas Day - a big celebration in Belgium - on 6 December.
As the topic is Seasonal Cooking, the focus is on the food involved. I chose to highlight speculoos or speculaas, a wonderful spice cookie that is available year-round, but that comes in special shapes and sizes for the day of the "Good Saint".
There's even a recipe!
Bon apetit!
Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten
Today it is definitely Fall in Boston. I became conscious of this not because of the sudden biting chill, the desire for a hat and gloves, the peaking colors of the leaves... It was the melancholy atmosphere at our Farmer’s Market here in Brookline, Massachusetts, as the farmers packed up their stalls in the twilight, one last time this season.
Researching all the festivals and holidays that occur in Fall has been an eye-opener for me. Time and time again I realized that so many of our present-day celebrations are still closely tied to the agricultural history of our society. Halloween and all the other Fall Festivals of Death are fundamentally harvest festivals.
So is Thanksgiving as it is celebrated in the United States (Thursday, 23 November) and in Canada (Monday, 9 October). This discrepancy in dates, by the way, also has to do with the harvest coming earlier in Canada.
I have come to appreciate, in the most positive sense of the word, the fact that we, in our industrial societies, still do let some of those agrarian customs seep through in our lives. We may find California strawberries, South-American bananas and Florida organs in our supermarkets all year round, but the seasons do still intrude in our lives… whether we realize it, or not.
In this week’s article on the First Thanksgiving, I contend that the festival is primarily a harvest festival, and that any other so-called "thanksgiving" celebrations cannot be called "Thanksgiving" in the strict sense, with the capital T, if you wish.
As a result, I am forced to conclude that, contrary to popular (Canadian) belief, Canada can not lay claim to the First North-American Thanksgiving.
Let me just say that, like the turkey, I am really sticking my neck out for you, my readers! My editor (Catherine Tse) is Canadian, and Suite101 is half owned and almost wholly run by Canadians. I may be committing professional suicide by valiantly bringing you the truth!
Hopefully I'll get a pardon. But you may, of course, contest my proposition, and I hope we get a good discussion going. After all, it’s as much about the history as about the spirit of Thanksgiving...
