Food

Reader Stories: How Does Your Family Celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

In most Christian and Orthodox Christian Eastern European households, Christmas Eve is as special as Christmas Day. The house is cleaned from top to bottom, a tree or tree branch is brought into the home to be decorated with fruit, nuts and handmade paper ornaments. Straw is spread under the dinner table to represent the Christ Child's manger. A special meatless dinner, consisting of up to 13 courses, is prepared. Carols are sung, fortunes are told, and the Baby Jesus is welcomed to the world at a solemn midnight Mass. Share your memories of how you celebrated or still celebrate Christmas the Old World way.

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Eastern European Food

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