Celebrating Christmas in Mexico
October 10, 2008 by
Mexico has Christmas celebrations that you will not find elsewhere. Christmas in Mexico includes things that you would be familiar with from other celebrations and some unique to Christmas and the strong religious traditions in Mexico.
The Christmas season in Mexico begins on December 16th, when they have a celebration called Posadas, when in the villages and towns citizens recreate the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem. Every house will hold a Posada ,but not all on the same night. Each
family has the chance to be an innkeeper and the rest of the villagers will be the Holy Family. Just as the Holy Family did, they knock on doors and only the third house will let them in. It is nine nights of religious celebrations, followed by a party for the children which includes the breaking of a pinata.
December 24th is Noche Buena or Holy Night. It is a tradition to go to Midnight Mass and then it is home for a big dinner with the family. The door of a Mexican home is always open on Christmas Eve for those who do not have a place for dinner. No one spends Christmas Eve alone.
There are no presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. They are days for religious activities, not commercial.
That is not to say that there are no presents, they are brought on Jan 6th and the presents are brought by the Three Kings. It is a lot like St. Nicholas Day in other countries, with the children leaving their shoes out for the Kings to fill with presents. There is a traditional light meal served in the evening and there is a beautiful tradition associated with it There is a bread served known as the Rosca de Reyes. Inside the bread is a little doll and the person lucky enough to get the piece with the doll will hold a special place of honor at one of the last ceremonies of the season, the Candelaria, which takes place on February 2nd. This is the day the nativity scenes are put away and it involves a ceremony. The person who got the doll is responsible for making a christening gown of the Baby Jesus and is his godparent. The ceremony is topped off with a traditional Mexican meal of Tamales.
The Christmas season in Mexico begins on December 16th, when they have a celebration called Posadas, when in the villages and towns citizens recreate the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem. Every house will hold a Posada ,but not all on the same night. Each
December 24th is Noche Buena or Holy Night. It is a tradition to go to Midnight Mass and then it is home for a big dinner with the family. The door of a Mexican home is always open on Christmas Eve for those who do not have a place for dinner. No one spends Christmas Eve alone.
There are no presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. They are days for religious activities, not commercial.
That is not to say that there are no presents, they are brought on Jan 6th and the presents are brought by the Three Kings. It is a lot like St. Nicholas Day in other countries, with the children leaving their shoes out for the Kings to fill with presents. There is a traditional light meal served in the evening and there is a beautiful tradition associated with it There is a bread served known as the Rosca de Reyes. Inside the bread is a little doll and the person lucky enough to get the piece with the doll will hold a special place of honor at one of the last ceremonies of the season, the Candelaria, which takes place on February 2nd. This is the day the nativity scenes are put away and it involves a ceremony. The person who got the doll is responsible for making a christening gown of the Baby Jesus and is his godparent. The ceremony is topped off with a traditional Mexican meal of Tamales.
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Posted on 11/17/2008 at 4:11:24 PM