Merry Urban Pagan Yule Celebration
Bonfires Blazed in Fields and Seasonal Logs Were Lit in Ancient Days
Nov 16, 2009
Yule is one of the Pagan Fire Festivals. Many urban Pagans don’t have traditional hearths for fires. There are beautiful electric full-sized fireplaces complete with mantles. There are small electric stoves for people who don’t have room for fireplaces. Silk, dried and potted plants make beautiful Yule decorations.
Urban Pagan Celebration of Yule
Central to the celebration is the burning of the Yule Log. Traditionally, it was harvested or received as a gift, but was never bought. It was placed into the fireplace, adorned with greenery of the season and doused with ale or cider before being lit.
Ash, sacred to the Druids because it brought light into the hearth during the solstice, is the traditional wood used for a Yule log. The Yule log is lit from the remains of last year’s log at sunset on the day of the Solstice; the previous year's Yule log is saved to guard homes against lightning and fire. Brown pillar candles with candle rings of fireproof Yule greenery and pine and bayberry incense can be substituted for the traditional Yule log. Lit candles, wax or electric, placed about the room substitute bonfires that were lit in fields.
Children went to houses with gifts of clove-spiked apples and oranges resting on evergreen boughs and wheat stalks dusted with flour. The fruit represented the sun, the boughs, immortality, wheat stalks, the past harvest and flour, triumph, light, and life.
The baskets can be used as Yule centerpieces. Holly, mistletoe, and ivy invited Nature Spirits to join the celebration. Silk plants in bowls or pots can adorn the home. Celebrate love, camaraderie and accomplishments of the past year. Share hopes and aspirations for the future and exchange presents.
Urban Yule Feast
Traditional foods are pork, apples, pears, nuts, fruitcakes, eggnog, mincemeat pies, spiced cider, ginger tea and wassail.
- Roast Pork Loin with Wine/Orange Marinade: Combine 1/ 2 cup each orange juice and dry white wine, 2 tablespoons each Dijon mustard and honey and 4 minced garlic cloves. Pour marinade over 1 1/2 pound pork loin roast in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate over night, stirring from time to time. Bring marinade to boil and remove from heat. Roast pork at 350 degrees for about twenty minutes per pound or until the temperature is 165 degrees or juices run clear when pierced. Let rest for 10 minutes before carving. Heat marinade and serve with pork.
- Chestnut Stuffing: Sauté 1/4 cup chopped onion in 1/4 cup margarine until glossy. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon ground sage. Put 4 cups dry bread cubes and 1 (4 oz) jar chopped chestnuts in large bowl. Stir in onion mixture and add 1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth to moisten mixture. Put into greased casserole and cover. Bake at 350 degree heat for about 1/2 hour.
- Fried Red Cabbage and Apples: Heat 1 tablespoon salad oil in pan. Add 8 cups shredded red cabbage and 1/2 cup chopped onion and cook until cabbage is done. Mix in 2 sliced apples and 2 tablespoons water. Cover and simmer for 1/2 hour. Add about 3 tablespoons each cider vinegar and sugar, according to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Mincemeat Cookies: Blend 3/4 cup each light brown and white sugar with 1 cup softened shortening. Add three cups flour, three beaten eggs and 1 teaspoon baking powder. Mix thoroughly. Add 1 and 1/2 cup mincemeat filling and 1/4 cup chopped walnuts. Drop by teaspoonful on greased cookie sheet 2 inched apart. Bake at 400 degrees for ten minutes or until lightly browned.
Articles Related to Urban Pagan Yule Celebration
People who enjoyed this article might want to read Yule_Pagan_Celebration, Yule_Pagan_Celebration_Feast and Yule_Presents_Ideas_for_Pagans.
Sources:
The Celtic Druid’s Year, John King, (Blandford, 1995).
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, Scott Cunningham, (Llewellyn Publications, 1992).
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