Part of my childhood was spent in Germany. I went to a German school for part of that time and we had a German nanny. I was immersed in the culture and language at an early age. And Christmas in Germany became one of my favorite times and some of my best memories.
We celebrated every year Sankt Nikolaus Tag. On the night of December 5, we would place our shoes outside the door. If we had been good that year, Sankt Nikolaus would leave chocolates, fruit, and other goodies in our shoes. If we had been bad, then we would find wood switches in our shoes the next morning. This was the commencement of the Christmas season which would last until Epiphanie (January 6). As Donna Pointkouski has written here, celebrations of this sort are Catholic traditions in Germany, especially in the southern regions such as Bavaria.
The story of Saint Nicholas’s generosity was the certain precursor to the now secularized story of Santa Claus. But today, some German Catholics object to the blurring of the distinction between the holy saint and the jolly elf who slides down chimneys (whom they call “Weihnachtsmann” ["Christmas Man"]). They’re waging a campaign to maintain the dignity of the historical St Nicholas by declaring Weihnachtsmann-free zones. Even the German version of CYO (Catholic Youth Organization), the Bund der Deutschen Katholischen Jugend (BDKJ) supports the campaign in some areas. See the website Weihnachtsmann-freie Zone at http://www.weihnachtsmannfreie-zone.de/.
Another Catholic tradition that I first became familiar with in Germany is the Advent Calendar. This is a calendar for counting down the days of Advent until Christmas. Frequently, the calendar has little doors to open for each date. There may be a religious message or gift, or a small toy, piece fruit, or candy associated with each opened door. I looked forward to each Advent in Germany to get a new Advent Calendar.
Other countries have embraced the idea of the Advent Calender. American Catholics see the Advent calendar as a way to be reminded daily of the need to prepare for the greatest liturgical event of the year.
As it turns out, the Advent Calendar in reality is neither of Catholic origin nor “traditional” (at least not in German historical terms). The idea dates from about 1850 and originated among German Lutherans!
German Christmas carols, however, are firmly grounded in Catholic tradition. My favorite German carol is this one:
At the German school I attended, we learned that the words were written by an Austrian priest, Father Josef Mohr in 1816. In 1818, Father Mohr asked Franz Joseph Gruber to coompose a melody for the song. Tradition holds that Father Mohr asked Gruber to compose the music for guitar because the piano in his church was not functioning. Some historians today find this story apocryphal. Whatever its origins, it has become a Christmas tradition worldwide. An Episcopalian bishop, John Freeman Young, wrote the widely used English translation in 1859.
The first Christmas song I learned in Germany has also become a classic. The traditional version consists of a melody of an old German folk song and words composed by Ernst Gebhardt Anschutz (1780-1861). Here’s Nat King Cole’s popular rendition:
Este noche es la primera noche de la novena de Las Posadas.”
My Catholic family moved to New Mexico a little more than 50 years ago. New Mexico had not yet been a state 50 years at the time. Thanks to my parents’ emphasis on learning and culture, and aided by the mandatory Spanish classes in Albuquerque’s public school system, we soon became familiar with the cultural practices of the Land of Enchantment. From food to music to dress, we became as completely “Mexican” or “New Mexican” as we possibly could.My favorite traditions were the Christmas ones. The people in New Mexico honored a Mexican tradition called Las Posadas. Brought originally to Mexico from Spain, this is a nine day event celebrated from December 16 to December 24 (“Buena Noche“). Every night, there is a live dramatization of Mary and Joseph’s search for lodging in Bethlehem. A couple portraying Mary and Joseph go from house to house for shelter and are turned away, until finally they are admitted. There are songs that go with this dramatization–some of which I remember to this day. The songs are sung by los peregrinos, begging for shelter, and are answered by los hosteleros. At the place where they are finally admitted, there is a great party. One feature of the party usually is la pinata for the children. A pinata is a papier-mache effigy on a string, dangled above the ground. It is filled with candies, fruits, nuts and other goodies. A child who is blindfolded (con los ojos cubiertos) holds a stick (en los manos un baston) and swings at the pinata to break it (ya se romper la pinata). An adult usually controls the movement of the pinata by the string. The other children sing cantos para romper la pinata(songs for breaking the pinata).This pageant is repeated every night for each of the nine nights, with different families playing the Holy Family, other pilgrims, and the innkeepers. A different house hosts the party each of the nine nights. In some Catholic countries whose cultures derive from Spain, the pageant involves carrying statues of the holy family instead of live participants. Some form of Las Posadas is celebrated in Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Cuba.
Here are some of the songs I recall from Las Posadas in Albuquerque:
Los peregrinos:
En el nombre del cielo os pido posada pues no puede andar mi esposa amada.
In the name of Heaven I beg you for lodging, for she cannot walk, my beloved wife.
Los hosteleros:
Aquí no es mesón, sigan adelante. Yo no debo abrir, no sea algún tunante.
This is not an inn so keep going. I cannot open; you may be a rogue.
Los peregrinos:
No seas inhumano, tennos caridad, que el Dios de los cielos te lo premiará.
Don’t be inhuman; Have mercy on us.The God of the heavens will reward you for it.
Los hosteleros:
Ya se pueden iry no molestar porque si me enfadoos voy a apalear.
You can go on now and don’t bother us, because if I become annoyed I’ll give you a thrashing.
Los peregrinos:
Venimos rendidosdesde Nazarét, yo soy carpintero de nombre José.
We are worn out coming from Nazareth. I am a carpenter, Joseph by name.
Los hosteleros:
No me importa el nombre, déjenme dormir, pues que yo les digo que no hemos de abrir.
I don’t care about your name: Let me sleep, because I already told you we shall not open up.
Los peregrinos:
Posada te pide, amado casero, por sólo una noche la Reina del Cielo.
I’m asking you for lodging dear man of the house Just for one night for the Queen of Heaven.
Los hosteleros:
Pues si es una reina quien lo solicita, ¿cómo es que de noche anda tan solita?
Well, if it’s a queen who solicits it, why is it at night that she travels so alone?
Los peregrinos:
Mi esposa es María, es Reina del Cielo y madre va a serdel Divino Verbo.
My wife is Mary. She’s the Queen of Heaven and she’s going to be the mother of the Divine Word.
Los hosteleros:
¿Eres tú José? ¿Tu esposa es María? Entren, peregrinos, no los conocía.
Are you Joseph? Your wife is Mary? Enter, pilgrims; I did not recognize you.
Los peregrinos:
Dios pague, señores, vuestra caridad, y que os colme el cielo de felicidad.
May God pay, gentle folks, your charity, and thus heaven heap happiness upon you.
¡Dichosa la casa que alberga este día a la Viren pura.la hermosa María!
Blessed is the house that shelters this day the pure Virgin, the beautiful Mary.
Todos: [Everybody sing!]
Entren, Santos Peregrinos, reciban este rincón, que aunque es pobre la morada, os la doy de corazón.
Enter, holy pilgrims, receive this corner, for though this dwelling is poor, I offer it with all my heart.
Oh, peregrina madre, oh, bellísima María. Yo te ofrezco el alma mía para que tengáis posada.
Oh, graced pilgrim, oh, most beautiful Mary. I offer you my soul so you may have lodging.
Humildes peregrinos Jesús, María y José, el alma doy por ellos,mi corazón también.
Humble pilgrims, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, I give my soul for them and my heart as well.
Cantemos con alegría todos al considerarque Jesús, José y Maríanos vinieron a honrar.
Let us sing with joy, all bearing in mind that Jesus, Joseph and Mary honor us by having come.
The video below gives an idea of what the music sounds like:
And then on the way to the great party, the throng might sing:
Marchemos cantando Let us march singing marchemos cantando Let us march singing con gozo y fervor With joy and fervor para ir saludando To go greet las glorias de Dios! the Glories of God!
One version of the pinata song is this:
Andale, nino,
No pierdas el tino,
Mide la distancia
Que hay en el camino
Dale, dale, dale,
No pierdas el tino,
porque si lo pierdes
pierdes el camino
No quiero oro
No quiero plata
yo lo que quiero
es romper la piñata
Echen confites
y canelones
pa’ los muchachos
que son muy tragones.
La piñata tiene caca, tiene caca, tiene caca, cacahuates de a montón
Hit, boy! Don’t lose your aim, Measure the distance That’s on the way.
Hit, hit, hit,
Don’t lose your aim,
Because if you lose it,
You lose the way.
I don’t want gold
I don’t want silver
What I want is
To break the piñata
Throw candies
And mints
For the kids
Who are very greedy
The piñata has pee,
Pee,
Pee…
Peanuts by the ton!
For more information on Las Posadas, see the following links:
Personal Note: I cannot think of Las Posadas without remembering two very special teachers who brought different cultures into our classrooms long before it was fashionable (or on the other hand, mandatory) to do so: my fourth grade teacher, Theodora Erikson Cooper (1907-2006) and my fifth grade teacher, Nathalie A. Harshman (1907-2001). May God bless their souls forever and ever.
Saint Lucy was born about 283 AD in Syracuse, Sicily and died about 304 AD in the same area. The thing about saints born so long ago is that there weren’t many (if any) records kept to detail their lives and deaths. Often times their histories were told and retold orally many times before they were ever written down. Legends grew over time. There are several legends attributed to Saint Lucy, some may be based in truth, others may be nothing more than myths. It’s hard to say which are which.
Photo from Wikipedia
One legend says Lucy was betrothed against her will and vowed to remain a virgin as a pledge to her faith in Jesus Christ. Supposedly her betrothed didn’t like that idea and reported her (as a Christian) to the Roman authorities. The legend has it that her eyes were gouged out as punishment. Or she gouged them out herself and offered them to her captors. (There are different versions.) This legend was commonly believed and when she was the subject of artists in the 1500s she was depicted with her eyeballs on a plate. And for that reason and because her name means “light”, she is the patron saint of the blind and eye disorders.
The one thing that seems to be accepted as fact is that she was persecuted for her belief in Jesus Christ.
Photo from Wikipedia
There are St Lucy (Lucia) light festivals held in some Scandinavian countries. According to folk legend, December 13th follows the longest night of the year in Sweden. In celebration, school girls dress up in white robes with a candle-lit wreath on their heads. What a lovely sight that must be!
In Italy and Sicily, Saint Lucy is honored on December 13th with dinner feasts of pasta dishes and other Italian foods. Now that’s a grand idea, don’t you think? Perhaps you will honor Saint Lucy with pasta at dinner tonight!
My mother’s name was Lucy. Actually, she was baptized in the Catholic church as Lucja (Polish version of Lucy) and legally her name was Lucille. But everyone called her Lucy. I always wondered why she was given that name. She wasn’t named for anyone in the family. Nor for her Godmother. Nor for my grandmother’s best friend in America. The thought crossed my mind that she may have been named for St Lucy but I can’t find any information about the saint that would have my grandmother naming her daughter after her. And the timing wasn’t right for her to have been named for the saint simply because her birth was in close proximity to the feast day. The Feast of St Lucy is today, December 13th while my mother was born in July. Perhaps she was given the name simply because my grandmother or grandfather liked it. Back in 1918, when she was born, Lucille was the 29th most common name for baby girls.
You can’t be in Los Angeles very long before you bump into the iconic image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Or at least, that’s the way it used to be.
The stretch of Pasadena Freeway Highway 110 that I travel frequently between Pasadena and Los Angeles was for years home to a particularly large and garish mural painted on the side of a building along a frontage road, with only a raw chain link fence separating God’s Mother and the merciless humanity that flowed by each day.
When I decided to write this article for The Catholic Gene on Our Lady of Guadalupe in Los Angeles, I thought I would have no problem locating the freeway virgin and several other popular renditions. Alas, times change. Freeway improvements and a new sound wall now obscure sections of neighborhood streets.
I’ve lost Our Lady somewhere between Highland Park and Dodger Stadium.
Angelenos’ affection for Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the oldest traditions in our rather recent history, with roots in the desert near Mexico City.
On his way to Mass on December 9, 1531, an Indian peasant named Juan Diego was passing near Tepeyac when he heard music and saw a vision of a beautiful young woman. She spoke to him in his own language, identifying herself as the Virgin Mary, and expressed her wish that a shrine be built at the place she appeared. She told Juan Diego to go to the Bishop in Mexico City and share the story of the vision and her wishes for a chapel.
Juan Diego was unable to persuade the Bishop of the truth of his story, and returned to the hill where he saw the Virgin a second time. She told him to return to the Bishop, who then asked Juan Diego to bring him a sign from the Lady.
Then, life intervened. Juan Diego’s uncle became seriously ill and Juan Diego was unable returned to Tepeyac until December 12. What he saw must have been truly astounding. The lady waited for him and assured him that his uncle would recover. When she heard the Bishop’s request for a sign, she directed Juan Diego to the summit of the hill where he found a wealth of fresh flowers in an area where they had never been known to grow. He gathered the blooms in his cloak and carried the bundle to the Bishop.
But, when Juan Diego opened his cloak to show the Bishop the flowers sent as a sign from the lady, the surprise was not the blossoms as much the colored image of the Virgin depicted exactly as Juan Diego had described her.
The image itself bore a striking resemblance to an Indian woman, not a European or Spaniard, with symbolism that would have been familiar to 16th century Aztecs. Blue referenced divinity and the gods; the rays of the sun emanating from her figure indicate her superiority to the great sun god; she stands on the moon, and hence the moon god. Her rose-covered dress would have been worn by an Aztec princess.
The Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe as she appeared on Juan Diego's cloak.
By appearing to Juan Diego, an Indian convert to Catholicism, Our Lady of Guadalupe became the rally-cry and devotion for millions of native people ready to turn away from the cruel Aztec religion to a loving and accepting deity. Her insistence that an Indian convert should act as her messenger sent a powerful message to the disenfranchised natives of Mexico.
Our Lady of Guadalupe continues to inspire devotion throughout the world, especially in the Americas. The image is now displayed behind the altar at La Basilica de la Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe in what is now La Villa, Mexico City.
Closer to home, at least to me in Pasadena, California, Our Lady of Guadalupe is everywhere. Not surprisingly, she is the patron saint of “little businesses” and often found adorning corner markets in the barrio. Her image on bumper stickers guards the family car, on skin speaks of commitment, and in front-lawn shrines shares devotion.
Last Sunday after Mass I recruited my husband to join me on a pilgrimage of sorts – to see if we could find those neighborhood icons of Our Lady of Guadalupe that keep flashing through my memory.
Our Lady of Guadalupe chapel at St. Andrew Church in Old Pasadena.
I said a prayer in the Our Lady of Guadalupe chapel in our church, St. Andrew in Old Pasadena, and we headed out on our quest. We had no luck along the freeway frontage roads. We cruised Hispanic neighborhoods without success. But after a burger-break in nearby Eagle Rock, Our Lady smiled.
Our Lady adorns a tortilla factory in Eagle Rock, near Los Angeles.
Restaurant in Highland Park.
Side of restaurant building with mural of Aztec symbols and Juan Diego kneeling before vision of Our Lady.
While Christmas is joyfully celebrated by Christians of all varieties, the option of celebrating the weeks before the big holiday have only caught on with Protestants in the last few decades. I didn’t discover Advent until I was in college, and figured any religion that could make Christmas into a four week holiday (longer, if you count Epiphany!) was worth serious consideration.
Leave it to the Catholics to know how to plan a party. First, the colors change. The banners, altar cloths, and priests’ garb changes to violet, white, then gold. In fact, the Church declares that Advent, the season of anticipation, is the beginning of the Church year. Mass begins with the lighting of the Advent candle as a reminder of the new liturgical season, sort of like Black Friday kicking off the holiday shopping season.
When my sons were young we set up a small Advent wreath to light at home and a German Advent Calendar with little paper doors to open each day until December 25th. You never know what little things will lead to. . .
Twenty years later the four of us were in Germany for Christmas discovering yet another Advent tradition at the Weinachtsmarkt or Christkindlmarkt, a holiday street market with roots in the Middle Ages usually held in the marketplace or on the steps of the local church. The Dresden Weinachtsmarkt is credited as being the oldest market (from 1434), but Vienna claims its Bautzen market of 1294 was the forerunner.
At churches throughout Germany. Austria, and Alsace, the First Sunday Of Advent marks the opening of the Weinachtsmarkt, The Christmas version of our Southern California church fiesta.
We stumbled on our first Weinachtsmarkt somewhere off the autobahn from Munich to Freiberg after a mind-and -body- numbing nonstop flight from Los Angeles. We pulled off the highway in desperate search for a reststop and refreshment, and suddenly found ourselves in front of a Catholic church where the universal sounds of of hammers and electric drills filled the air. A closer look showed that wooden stalls were being assembled, grills heated, and gluwein set to simmer.
We were first to sample the hot mulled drink and sausages, warming our hands around the cups as we watched assorted animals being led into the square for the Nativity stall. Children helped throw the hay for bedding, and stroked the animals. In the short time we were there, stringed lights came to life, the sound of hammers gave way to singing, and more people filled the market.
In Freiburg im Breisgau where our son lived we discovered double Weinachtsmarkts. The large central fair on the Rathausplatz (town square), and a smaller one set up in front of a smaller church.
Of course, the main attraction at these events is the food — sizzling wursts in all varieties, steaming mugs of hot spiced Glüwein, stollen, candies, lebkuchen. Stalls offered assorted Bavarian Christmas wares for sale, from handmade wooden cheese boards to knit scarves, to carved wooden ornaments.
In Strasbourg, we found the Alsatian version held in the square outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourgwhere Croque Monsier and soft macaroons were the snacks of choice instead of the traditional Bavarian wurst und .
In anticipation of Advent, I am dusting off our home Advent wreath and setting up the little German calendar. The Glühwein is already steaming.
Traditional Glühwein (Glow Wine)
1 bottle nice full red wine
1 lemon
12 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 – 1/3 cup sugar
Pour the wine and sugar into a large saucepan and heat gently; do not boil. Cut the lemon in half and stick the cloves into one half. Thinly slice the other half. Add the lemon with cloves, and lemon slices, and cinnamon stick. Heat slowly until steaming hot. Traditionally served in glass mugs.
I come from a long line of Polish Catholics. I’ve long been interested in how my ancestors celebrated the various holidays, saint’s feast days, and other holy days. The Catholic Poles had many, many religious ceremonies and prayer services unheard of here in the United States or elsewhere in the world. Poland has long been a country that struggled for peace, was dominated and taken over by its neighbors, and suffered when those neighbors tried to extinguish its very culture. Through it all, the strong faith of the people of this predominantly Catholic country has prevailed. It’s enlightening to take a look at the religious rites that were and still are practiced in Poland, the land of my ancestors. Here is an example of a Polish Catholic prayer service for the Advent season.
A traditional Polish observance of the season of Advent differs greatly from the heavily commercialized time before Christmas in this country. It is a time of reflection and spiritual preparation for the coming of Christ at Christmas. The word advent comes from the Latin adventus which means the coming. We await the coming of the Messiah not only in the flesh but also for His second coming as Judge at the end of the world. Hope is the dominant characteristic of the season of Advent. There is a focus during the season on our longing for God’s grace and His friendship. It is understood that parties, weddings, and other boisterous events would be an obstacle to the search for God’s grace and building that friendship, and so they are avoided. Advent is also a time for reconciliation with God through the Sacrament of Penance.
Throughout advent many people in Poland participate in an early morning Mass called Roraty. It begins just before sunrise in almost complete darkness in the church. The name roraty comes from the ancient Latin chant that is sung to begin the service: Rorate Coeli, de super; et nubes pluant justum – O Heavens, drop down your dew from on high and may the Just One be rained by the clouds. The words of the ancient hymn are a plea for God’s gift of His Son. As the hymn is sung candles are gradually lit in the dark church. Roraty is a kind of daily Advent vigil ceremony. The people wait in darkness not only for the rising of the sun but ultimately for the return of the Son of God, so beautifully symbolized by dawn’s first light.
The roraty service has a definite Marian dimension to it as does the entire season of Advent. In the sanctuary is found one special candle that is more predominate than the others used in the ceremony. It is traditionally decorated with greenery and white ribbon in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who plays and important role in the raining down of the Just One.
The Advent roraty ceremony originated in the 13th century during the reign of King Boleslaw Wstydliwy (the Bashful) who was the husband of St Kinga. According to historical documents, a representative of every social state lit one candle of a specially prepared seven-branch candelabrum in the cathedral at the early morning service, starting with the king. As each man lit his candle he proclaimed: Paratus sum ad adventum Domini/Gotow jestem na pryjscie Pana – I am ready for the coming of the Lord! After the king lit his candle he was followed by the cardinal primate, then a senator, a nobleman, a knight, a townsman and finally the seventh candle was lit by a peasant farmer.
Preparation for the Lord’s coming, both interior and spiritual as well as exterior and temporal is an integral part of a truly Catholic observance of the holy season of Advent.
Many thanks to Rev. Mark A. Borkowski, Associate Pastor, Ss Peter & Paul Catholic Church, Detroit, Michigan, who was kind enough to allow me to share his article with you.
Below is a video showing a portion of a Roraty service filmed in a village not far from my maternal grandfather’s village in Poland.
My Godmother was my favorite aunt. Cecilia Laska was born November 18, 1912 in Detroit, Michigan. She always went by, “Ceily”, so to me she was “Auntie Ceily”. She was closest in age to my dad and was the 4th child, 2nd daughter, of the 11 children of Jozef Laska and Karolina Lipa.
Ceily was a diamond among stones. She was the cultured one in the family and had refined tastes. She was the one who appreciated fine art (and had reproductions hanging in her home), music (the only one in the family to own a musical instrument), shopped at better stores and wore the nicest clothes money could buy. She even had a signature fragrance, Chanel No. 5. Whenever I smell that scent I always think of her.
Ceily Laska Sagovac, 1949
As a child I was fascinated by Auntie Ceily. I idolized her like a Hollywood movie star. I thought I was the luckiest kid on earth to have her for my Godmother. She was very good to me in the material sense but more importantly she was always kind to me. She made a point of talking to me even when there were other adults around. And she never missed an occasion to give me a gift… birthdays, Christmas, Easter, First Holy Communion, graduation. She always remembered me and I adored her. Sadly, Auntie Ceily died of lung cancer in 1989 but she will live in my heart forever.
Today, November 22, is the Feastday of St Cecilia. I’ve no doubt that my Auntie Ceily was named for St Cecilia. It was common for Poles and Americans of Polish descent to name their children after the saint whose feastday was closest to the day of their birth. It’s interesting that my Auntie Ceily and St Cecilia had some things in common too.
It is believed that St Cecilia was born in the 2nd or 3rd century AD in Rome although the exact dates of her birth and martyrdom are unknown. It’s said she was an only child born to wealthy, Christian, educated parents but promised in marriage to a pagan Roman, Valerian, when she was just a young child. Reports of her life differ from one source to another but most agree she was cultured and came from a privileged background.
Painting of St Cecilia done in 1606
A story is told of how Cecilia prayed to God and the saints to protect her virginity and after her wedding to Valerian she told him she was protected by the angels and saints. He then asked her to show him the angel protecting her. She sent him to Pope Urban (223-230) who baptized/converted him and when he returned he found Cecilia praying in a chapel and an angel with flaming wings nearby. Valerian and Cecilia were discovered in that chapel by Valerian’s brother and he was so awed by what he saw that he too converted.
Some time after that, Valerian and his brother were put to death by the Roman prefect. Then, Cecilia too was ordered to be put to death but not before she made arrangements to have her home converted into a church. As the story goes, Cecilia was first sentenced to death by steaming but she survived that. Then she was sentenced to die of beheading. Three attempts were made to behead her before her executioner gave up and fled in fear. It is said that she lingered for three days, baptizing many during that time, until she bled to death.
At some point, (some sources say when she was about to be married others say when she was on her deathbed) Cecilia “sang or heard heavenly music in her heart”. That image caught on and she was forever more known as the patron saint of music, especially church music, and musical instruments. In paintings and art work she is most often portrayed with an organ or violin.
My Auntie Ceily was no St Cecilia but I find it intriguing that she was the only one in her poor immigrant family who lived a cultured life, like the saint she was named for. And the man she married, I wouldn’t go so far as to call him a pagan but he wasn’t Catholic and she married him in a civil ceremony much to the chagrin of her parents who were devout Catholics. I’m not sure if he converted to Catholicism later in life or not but after 20 years together their marriage was finally blessed in a Catholic church. And lastly, Ceily owned first a piano and later an organ. She was the only one in the family to do so. I don’t recall her ever playing either the piano or the organ but I remember plunking away on those ivory keys when we visited her home.
Back in October 2007, I traveled to Lithuania to spend a week with my relatives. My cousins Liliana, Aidas, and Vitas showed me a side of Lithuania I never would have seen on my own.
One day, while walking through the capital city of Vilnius, Liliana brought me to Vilnius University, the oldest university in the Baltic States and Liliana’s alma mater. Within the walls of the university stood St. John’s Church (Šv. Jonų Bažnyčia).
St. John’s Church in Vilnius
SOURCE: St. John’s Church in Vilnius (Vilnius, Lithuania); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 21 October 2007.
Saint John’s Church in Vilnius is the place where Saint Rafał Kalinowski was baptized. Born on 01 September 1835, he was baptized on 09 September 1835 with the name Józef, the second child of the Polish nobles Andrzej (Jędrzej) Kalinowski and Józefa Połońska (m. 1832). Józef’s brother Wiktor (b. 1833) had been born in Vilnius two years earlier.
Birth and Baptismal Record of Józef Kalinowski – 1835
SOURCE: Šv. Jonų Bažnyčia (Vilnius, Wilno Gubernia, Russian Empire), “Vilniaus Šv. Jonų RKB gimimo metrikų knyga [Church Registry Books of St. John's Church, Vilnius],” page 104, entry 226, Józef Kalinowski, 09 September 1835; digital images, ePaveldas (http://www.epaveldas.lt/vbspi/biRecord.do?biExemplarId=30557&psl=209 : accessed 19 November 2011).
Young Józef’s mother died within a few days of his birth. Józef’s father married Wiktoria Połońska (m. 1838), the sister of his deceased wife Józefa. Wiktoria gave birth to three children: Emilia (b. 1840), Karol (b. 1841), and Gabriel (b. 1845). When Józef was nine years old, his stepmother Wiktoria died. Józef’s father married again, this time to Zofia Puttkamer (m. 1848). (Zofia was the daughter of Maria Wereszczak, the first great love of famed Polish/Lithuanian poet Adam Mickiewicz). Andrzej and Zofia had four children: Maria (b. 1848), Aleksander (b. 1851), Monika (b. 1851), and Jerzy (b. 1859).
At the time Józef was born, Vilnius was part of the Wilno Gubernia of the Russian Empire. He attended university in St. Petersburg and, after graduation, Józef was appointed a lieutenant in the corps of engineers in Russia. His resigned his commission with the Russian military in 1863 and joined the insurgents against the Russian government in the January Uprising. After the failed uprising, Józef was condemned to death, a sentence that was commuted to ten years of hard labor in Siberia.
After his release from Siberia, Józef joined the Carmelite Order in Graz, Austria where he took the religious name Rafał (Raphael). Brother Rafał traveled to Györ, Hungary to complete his studies and was ordained to the priesthood in Czerna, Poland where he was appointed prior. Finally, Rafał was appointed prior and vicar provincial for the Discalced Carmelite nuns in Wadowice, Poland.
Saint Rafał Kalinowski -1897
SOURCE: Saint Rafał Kalinowski (http://tinyurl.com/7bboj5j : accessed 19 November 2011) citing Praskiewicz, Szczepan T. 1998. Saint Raphael Kalinowski: an introduction to his life and spirituality. Washington, D.C.: ICS Publications.
Prayer was the source and guiding principle of Rafał’s life and he worked to instill this philosophy in the Carmelite Order. Others were drawn to Rafał because of the authenticity of his prayer.
Rafał died in Wadowice on 15 November 1907 and was buried in the convent cemetery. However, large numbers of pilgrims came to visit his grave, carrying away handfuls of soil. His remains were moved to a tomb but even that solution did not deter the pilgrims who scratched at the tomb, leaving with bits of plaster. Finally, his remains were moved to a chapel in Czerna, Poland where they are today.
Rafał Kalinowski was beatified on 23 June 1983 and canonized on 17 November 1991 by Pope John Paul II. That Pope John Paul II would beatify and canonize Rafał Kalinowski is quite fitting. Eighteen years after Rafał Kalinowski died in Wadowice, Karol Wojtyła, the future Pope John Paul II, was born in the same village.
Saint Rafał Kalinowski’s feast is celbrated on November 19.
The Catholic faith has a deep and lasting legacy in the history of the Hungarian people. Not too many nations can boast of the canonization of one of their former monarchs as Hungary can of its beloved King St. Stephen.
The Catholic faith that was established in this western European nation – although challenged by Islam, Protestantism, and Communism – is still solid today. In fact, the new Hungarian constitution that will take effect in January 2012 has strongly reaffirmed the nation’s dedication to its Catholic foundations. (Read my Catholic Gene article Hungary’s New Constitution Reestablishes its Foundation on the Catholic Faith of its Forefathers.)
St. Elizabeth of Hungary serving the poor
Today, November 17, we remember another beloved Hungarian saint, although unlike King St. Stephen, she never actually lived in what is now considered present-day Hungary. This 13th century queen-turned-Franciscan-tertiary is remembered as St. Elizabeth of Hungary (Szent Erzsébet in Hungarian) although she was born in the area that is now known as Bratislava, Slovakia (then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire). Elizabeth was promised in marriage to a prince and at the age of four went to live with his family in what is now Marburg, Germany. Despite her royal status, she lived a life of generosity and simplicity committed to the works of mercy as inspired by St. Francis of Assisi.
Being named Lisa (which derives from Elizabeth) and having Hungarian heritage, I’ve adopted St. Elizabeth of Hungary as one of my patron saints. Today as I celebrate both my Hungarian heritage and the feast day of this holy young queen, I’d like to take you on a tour of the Hungarian Roman Catholic genealogy resources which are central to every genealogist’s search for ancestors in Hungary, no matter what faith they practiced.
Hungarian Genealogy 101
Anyone searching for vital records in Hungary before 1895 will have to rely on church records. Civil registration in the Austro-Hungarian Empire did not begin until that year. The Catholic faith has long been the prominent religion in Hungary, and although there are a handful of other churches that also kept records, even a search for non-Catholic ancestors may benefit from a visit to the records of the Roman Catholic Church. From the years 1730 to 1787, priests were required to keep records for all citizens of this Catholic nation, regardless of their religious affiliation (Greek Catholics*, Reformed Calvinists, Evangelical Lutherans and Jews included). When Protestants were first authorized in 1787 to keep their own registers, Hungarian imperial law required that they do so under Catholic supervision.
Depiction of the Council of Trent by artist Matthias Burglechner
The 1563 Council of Trent had first required Roman Catholic churches to keep parish registers, however Turkish rule in many areas of the Austro-Hungarian Empire prevented churches there from complying. A few early Franciscan registers date back to the mid-1600s, however, although most parishes do not have entries until the 1680s or later (after the departure of the Turks). Hungarian Roman Catholic Church records are now the property of the state (through the National Archives of Hungary in Budapest: Magyar Országos Leveltár), although they are stored in various county archives.
Hungarian Roman Catholic records with genealogical interest can come in several languages and include birth and christening registers (Kereszteltek Anyakönyve), marriage registers (Házasultak Anyakönyve) and death and burial registers (Halottak Anyakönyve). In Latin, the sacramental and death records are Matricula Baptisatorum, Matricula Copulatorum, and Matricula Defunctorum, respectively.
This baptismal registry lists the birth of my great-great-grandfather Istvan Tóth in 1874. It indicates the religion of the parents, including the Greek Catholic faith of his mother Erzsébet.
For help with simple translations, visit John Jaso’s Church Record Translations website, specifically the Hungarian and Latin terms and phrases webpages. (The website also includes help with the Slovak language.)
Hungarian Roman Catholic birth and baptismal records, particularly the more recent ones, will often include the birthdate along with the Baptism date, names of the child, parents, godparents (and sometimes grandparents), and town of residence. Marriage records will include the same basic information in addition to residence of origin for both the bride and groom, previous marital status, ages, names of parents and witnesses, and occupations. Church death records tend to have less genealogical information, although they may also include cause of death, birthdate and birthplace of the deceased, and names of survivors.
This 1904 birth record for István Tóth lists the birthplaces of each of his parents: Mezőkeresztes and Gelej, Hungary.
Hungarian Roman Catholic sacramental and death records have been microfilmed up to the year 1895 (some later) and are organized by church and then chronologically by date. They are usually not indexed, so without a known date the search can be time consuming.
Genealogist Felix Game has some helpful tips on reading Hungarian parish registers on his Austro-Hungarian genealogy website. Researchers unfamiliar with Hungarian names are often unaware that the family surname is listed before the given name. When the Hungarian records are in Latin, however, this order is switched and the surname is last.
If you are only beginning work on your Hungarian family tree, or you are well into the lifelong search we call genealogy, you may find the following websites and resources helpful:
Roman Catholic Church in my ancestors’ home village of Mezőkeresztes, Hungary
In the opening words of the new Hungarian constitution: “O Lord, blessed be the Hungarian nation.” And blessed be you who search diligently through records and struggle to translate foreign documents in search of your Hungarian lineage. May St. Elizabeth of Hungary, King St. Stephen, and all of those that have gone before you tracing their Hungarian genes, smile upon you and give you their blessing.
*Note: The Hungarian Greek Catholic Church comes under the category of the Byzantine or Eastern Rite Catholic Church. It originated in the 1600s after the Orthodox Ukrainian Ruthenes, Romanians and Serbs within the empire agreed to come under the jurisdiction of the Pope while being allowed to continue using the Orthodox liturgy. Most of these parishes began keeping registers in the mid-1700s.
My grandfather gave up his rights as a citizen of the empire of Austria-Hungary back in 1929. According to his petition for naturalization, it was his “bona fide intention to renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, and particularly to The Republic of Austria and the Present Government of Hungary.” Still, I feel a strong attachment to the nation where he got his start in life before emigrating at the age of 2 ½.
Young Pista Toth ("Pista" means little Stephen in Hungarian) made the journey with his mother and siblings from his family's home village of Gelej, Hungary to the port of Hamburg, Germany and then to New York City aboard the U.S.S. Pennsylvania in 1907. Here are their names on the passenger list.
Though I haven’t yet had the opportunity to visit the land of my ancestors, the culture and traditions of Hungary have become a part of my identity, as has the Catholic faith passed down to me through my Hungarian family tree.
I am saddened by the stories of the suffering of the Hungarian people (including my own distant cousins) under Communist rule, and often wonder how the lives of those in my branch of the family might have been different if my great-grandparents had not made the decision to take their four young children to America at the birth of the 20th century.
With this background in my family, I was very interested to hear the news that a new Hungarian Constitution taking effect in January 2012 takes brave steps to renounce its former Communist overlords and the current European trend toward modernism and reaffirm its national heritage based on the thousand-year-old Christian and nationalist foundation of Hungary begun by King St. Stephen.
Hungary's national treasure - the Crown of King St. Stephen - was a gift from the Pope in 1000 A.D.
The constitution is decidedly Christian, pro-tradition, pro-family, pro-children and pro-life: all important elements of the Catholic faith. Below are a few elements of and excerpts from the new constitution, including its National Avowal of Faith (which I encourage you to read in full).
A re-emphasis on Hungary’s ties to Christendom:
“We are proud, that our King St. Stephen established the Hungarian state on firm foundations a thousand years ago and our country a part of Christian Europe.”
“We recognize the role of Christianity in preserving our nationhood.”
A statement of nationalism and ethnic pride of the Hungarian people:
“We respect the achievements of our historic constitution and the Holy Crown, which embodies the continuity of the Hungarian constitutional state and the unity of the nation.”
“We are proud of our forefathers who struggled for survival, freedom, and independence of our country.”
“We are proud that our people have battled for centuries to protect Europe and have, with their talent and diligence, enriched her common values.”
“We undertake to preserve and nurture our legacy, the Hungarian culture, our unique language, the man-made and natural treasures of the Carpathian-basin.”
A reestablishment of the family as the central focus of the state:
“We profess that the most important frameworks for our coexistence are the family and the nation.”
An effort to preserve the unity and culture of Hungary by attending to the needs of Hungarian emigrants outside of its borders:
“Motivated by the ideal of a unified Hungarian nation, Hungary shall bear a sense of responsibility for the destiny of Hungarians living outside her borders, shall promote their survival and development, and will continue to support their efforts to preserve their Hungarian culture, and foster their cooperation with each other and with Hungary.”
As Europe continues to reshape its identity in the 21st century – what has been termed a post-modern age – it is interesting for those of us with ties to our Hungarian Catholic heritage to watch the reaffirmation of the thousand-year-old faith foundation that is our legacy.
