LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Christmas Traditions: Christmas Eve
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Traditions are strong in France as children hope Pere Noel (Father Christmas) will bring them presents. His partner Le Pere Fouettard (Father Spanker) would "reward" bad children with a spanking. The midnight service on Christmas Eve is traditionally followed by a meal called "le reveillon", meaning to wake up, or first call of the day. Sidewalk cafes and restaurants stay open all night serving reveillon which symbolizes spiritual awakening to the meaning of Christ's birth. The meal can consist of oysters, sausages, wine, baked ham, roast fowl, salads, fruit and assorted pastries.
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The decorations of the Christmas traditions of Japan include all the elements. The Nativity scene is given a corner in every house. They ... have turkey for Christmas dinner, Christmas trees, evergreens and mistletoe in their stores and homes and even Hoeiosho, the Japanese equivalent of Santa Claus, who is a Buddhist monk who bears gifts for the children. The family members exchange gifts and send cards with the true heart of giving. It is still undeniable that Christmas traditions of Japan is a time to spread happiness and romance. In this sense, the celebration is able to fulfill part of its purpose, even if the cynic and the traditionalist or conservative would say that it is due to commercialism.
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Christmas traditions and customs have become increasingly commercialized, yet, the old-world rituals make Christmas a new alacrity every year and infuse true enthusiasm in the Christmas celebrations. The traditions that are followed mainly focus on the birth of Christ and the joy of the precious moment. The vast differences are mostly due to other regional influences and people may celebrate Christmas by reading Bible and scriptures or make it more musical or perform living nativity, but the main theme is to involve the children and let them know about why Christmas is celebrated and the preaching of Christ. Keeping up the custom of giving presents to this day commemorates the three Wise Men who gave precious gifts to Jesus.
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The Christmas traditions of Japan are Christian traditions without its religious matrix as practiced in a country where only one per cent of its population are Christians. Nevertheless, the Japanese as a whole celebrate Xmas with curious vigor that can rival those of believers. In Japan, you will find all the universal symbols representing Xmas filling not only the homes but even the communities. The Japanese industry provided the Christian nations with supplies of Holiday decorations, toys and trinkets. The Japanese community later absorbed these practices.
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Performances of Handel’s Messiah are one of the oldest campus Christmas traditions. These performances began as early as 1896 and continued with great regularity through the 1980s. In some years the number of those involved was small because of unusual circumstances on campus. Indeed, in 1943 the performance was cancelled altogether because some of the soloists had influenza. In other years though, the number of people involved in the production ranged from 150 to over 350, depending on the strength of the glee clubs and orchestras. The event was always well attended not only by people on campus but ... by members of the community.
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OVER THE PAST 200 YEARS, as the traditions around Christmas have grown and the importance of this winter festival brightens the season, Saint Nicholas has been absorbed into the tradition. It was the Dutch settlers who brought the St. Nicholas customs across the ocean to New York. The whitebearded Saint Nicholas in a red bishop's costume was transformed into Santa Claus in the United States and Canada and eventually the tradition re-crossed the ocean to England.
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Christmas Eve