The Moravians truly celebrate the "reason for the season" as almost everything they do is rooted back in Moravian belief and tradition. A Moravian Christmas combines religion, region, and culture. Moravia is a region in Germany and Czechoslovakia. The Moravian religion which grew from that region claims to be one of the oldest Protestant denominations, and its Christmas is a combination of German tradition with a heavy undertone of religion. The Moravians settled in clusters with several settlements in the South. Up here, the Moravians settled in nearby Chaska and there is a big Moravian Church on the Town Square.
The Moravians are credited with erecting the first Christmas tree in America-- at a Moravian mission in Georgia in 1805. Here, the tree here is a spinoff of the German Christmas tree. Take 4-poles and tie them together up top, then drape greenery around each pole. Decorate with Beeswax candles and apples--the idea here is to keep the evergreen natural and pure, like Christ. You'll see beeswax candles tied with red ribbon to represent the blood sacrafice many Moravians made in the split from the Catholic religion. This goes back as far as 1762.
Most people associate the Moravian star very closely with Christmas. This actually started in German boarding schools as a way to teach students about geometry. After the stars were made, missionaries took the stars all over the world to tell the story of Advent. It's quite a trick to make these stars, but there are several out there who have mastered it.
The center of the Christmas celebration, though is the putz, pronounced poots, comes from the german word "putzen," which means to decorate or clean. This can be a simple manger scene, but they've been known to fill entire rooms. Either way, the center must be a manger. These are very elaborate and every year the family could add a new element. It would become a game to "gaze at the putz" to determine what was new that year.... and to tell the Christmas story again.
There's food too. These cookies are simple and (surprise!) tell the Christmas story. The white ones are of heavenly objects--stars, angels, hearts, and the dark ones are of earthly objects--people and animals.
The Love Buns are part of the traditional Moravian "Love Feast" which started back in the 1700s as a means of serious fellowship. Traditionally, it starts with prayer and includes hymns and serious discussion about faith. Love buns are served with the very basic idea that you couldn't really concentrate on lofty topics if you were hungry. This is a hard concept to explain to groups of teenagers who come through, as you can imagine where the Love Feast idea reverts their minds to.
I couldn't close the Moravian bit without a small mention of the stoves in this house. It has 3 and are all very small. It's quite a triumph to actually heat the place, and I always feel as if I've accomplished something when I can get all 3 actually going on a cold December morning.
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