By Abigail Gan | Staff Writer
Winter break is drawing near and Christmas is just around the corner — and with that comes the celebration of traditions and customs that many have practiced unquestioningly for years.
In his book titled “Why We Kiss Under the Mistletoe: Christmas Traditions Explained,” professor of patristics Dr. Michael Foley delves into the background and history of Christmas traditions. He said the idea for the work, which was released in September 2022, came at the suggestion of his publisher.
“I leapt at the opportunity because, like everybody else, I grew up loving Christmas and always being fascinated by all the customs and symbols, but they’re not always self-explanatory,” Foley said. “It was wonderful to have an opportunity to figure out the meaning behind some of our favorite things about Christmas.”
Foley said a lot of the traditions are very old, especially the ones regarding decorations.
“The Christmas tree and boughs of holly — these go back hundreds and hundreds of years,” Foley said. “The tradition of Christmas caroling is also very old. So there’s a lot of continuity over the centuries.”
While many things are still practiced and have stayed the same, Foley said there were surprises in the tone and purpose of the holiday in the past.
“In the Middle Ages, Christmas was really more for grown-ups. … It was a time of pretty hard partying and feasting among the grown-ups,” Foley said. “That was the Christmas model until the 19th century, when it became more sentimental and more domesticated. It became more centered on the family getting together, and then it became more centered on the children and giving them gifts through people like Santa Claus. But that aspect of Christmas is actually not that old.”
Foley said another surprise was the dark side of Christmas.
“A lot of Christmas stories involve some very spooky characters like sidekicks to St. Nicholas that are demons or goblins that roam around during Christmastime,” Foley said. “Christmas was a time for telling ghost stories of all things, and so that was a surprise to me because you think of Halloween as the scary time and Christmas as the safe, happy time.”
Foley said writing his book has affected how he approaches the Christmas season.
“It certainly has led to a deeper appreciation of the season,” Foley said. “In terms of how our family practices it, the good news is that we were already doing some of these things before I researched the book. So the joy of the book was getting a better understanding of why we do these things.”
Dr. William Weaver, director of the Great Texts program, said he and Foley have been colleagues for 17 years. He said Foley brings expert knowledge of the history of theology and is a great translator between the different disciplines taught in the Great Texts program.
“I’ve just learned so much from Dr. Foley about the literature on the practices and the history of the different forms [of traditions],” Weaver said.
Since the release of his book, Foley said Time Magazine, Elle Decor Magazine and others have come to him asking for information about the Christmas season. He said both magazines quoted him in articles.
Foley said “Why We Kiss Under the Mistletoe: Christmas Traditions Explained” will help readers celebrate the Christmas season better.
“We are so grateful for the birthday of Jesus — that He delivers us from the powers of darkness,” Foley said.
