How to Celebrate Christmas the Amish Way
The Amish celebrate Christmas in a way that exemplifies their values of simplicity and their focus on God, church, and family. A plain and modest people, the Amish have kept themselves separate from the society around them and reduced their use of modern technology to a minimum. Among the four Amish orders, customs concerning Christmas may vary. Among the Old Order Amish, houses won't have lights or Christmas decorations; Christmas and Old Christmas (January 6) are spent focusing on the birth of Jesus and visiting with family and friends. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Gifting and Feasting
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The Old Order Amish do not decorate Christmas trees. Keep it simple. The Amish view Christmas trees, lights, and other decorations as pagan so have never adopted these customs. Plan on cooking a hearty breakfast and a big feast for the late afternoon. Chores, of course, must still be done on Christmas Day, but only the most necessary ones of feeding farm animals and milking the cows.
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Focus on your religious beliefs in celebrating the birth of Jesus. If December 25 falls on a Sunday, then there will be a church service in the home of an Amish family in the church district, since the Amish do not have a separate church facility. If December 25 falls on a Saturday, as it does in 2010, then there will be no church service, and Amish will be visiting extended family and friends.
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Wooden toys are among the gifts Amish children receive from parents Prepare simple gifts for family and loved ones. Homemade gifts are the best, candies and wooden toys for the children, something for the workshop for Dad, something for the kitchen for Mom. As the three Wise Men brought gifts to baby Jesus, so the Amish give simple gifts to each other.
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Visit other family members and friends. The Amish will hitch horses to their buggies to make their rounds on Christmas. A large family (six to 10 children) is common, and extended families are the norm. Visiting time will be spent singing carols, playing, talking, praying, and feasting.
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Roast turkey is a favorite Christmas entree among the Amish Prepare the afternoon feast. Cooking is considered an art form among the Amish, and the Christmas meal is bountiful. Christmas cookies, candies and special breads will be given to family and friends, and an assortment of special dishes saved for weddings and holidays will be prepared. For the Christmas feast, a large table is set with steaming bowls of vegetables surrounding a roast turkey; men sit on one side and women on the other, with children at a separate table.
School and "Old Christmas" Traditions
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Attend the children's school Christmas program. You may see a play about the birth of Jesus in the manger and hear poems recited by the young scholars or hear Christmas songs and carols sung. Here is a sample verse of poem recited in a Christmas program: "Be reverent in spirit low, at the manger lowly; And catch anew the vision fair of the Christ Child holy; Be generous, give all you can, then give a little more; Be sure to give more largely now than you ever gave before."
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Celebrate "Alt-Christtag" (Old Christmas) on January 6. (January 6 was the birth of Jesus according to the older, Julian calendar.) Old Christmas is more likely to be celebrated by the more conservative Amish orders as the more traditional form of the holy day. Breakfast may be omitted, and the family will pray and read the New Testament. Again, families will quietly celebrate by visiting each other and singing.
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Ignore Santa and Rudolph. The Amish do not recognize Santa Claus or any of the other secular Christmas customs of the wider society. While you might see one-horse sleighs and hear bells jingling on the horse's harness, you will not hear "Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer" or similar Chsistmas songs among the Amish.
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Tips & Warnings
The Amish sometimes send Christmas cards to their "English" friends, and invite them to the children's school program.
If you have Amish friends, remember to keep your gifts simple. A box of homemade cookies and a 1,000-piece puzzle make good gifts for the children.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit amish travel image by Pix by Marti from Fotolia.com christmas tree image by Maria Brzostowska from Fotolia.com wooden bird image by Julija Sapic from Fotolia.com Roasted Turkey image by William Berry from Fotolia.com
