November 7, 2007

Temple University Ambler to host "Home For The Holidays: Community of Cultures" Holiday Celebration

The countdown to those special moments with family, friends, and community are underway, but just what holiday are you counting down to?

During this season, running to and from shopping malls and social gatherings, we are typically inundated with a dazzling array of images, most often related to Christmas. At this time of year, however, many of the major religions and cultures of the world celebrate a variety of holiday traditions.

On Friday, November 30, beginning at 8 p.m., the Temple University Ambler Program Board will host its third annual holiday show, entitled Home for the Holidays: A Community of Cultures, to commemorate many of the major holidays taking place. The event will be held in the Learning Center Auditorium. The 2007 program, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by CART (Commuters and Residents Together).

The celebration will be a charitable event; voluntary donations will be accepted at the door.  Proceeds will benefit the Wylie’s Day Foundation, which provides funding for medical research toward curing pediatric brain tumors. Local parent Stephanie Strotbeck created the foundation after her son Wylie passed away from a brain tumor at just 13 years old.

Shannon Parker, Temple Ambler freshman and Wylie’s cousin, suggested the cause for this year’s holiday show fundraiser. 

“The foundation provides awareness for pediatric brain tumors and raises money for research, as well as activities for the children suffering from this horrible disease,” Parker said.

The program, presented in the form of a play, is set in a snowed-in airport where George Grimsby, the Ebenezer Scrooge of his day, learns to embrace the holiday spirit.  Through song, dance, special readings, and a surprise or two — all performed by dozens of Ambler campus students — George is immersed in the many holiday traditions celebrated during this time of year.

“We wanted to make this event a true celebration of the diversity of this campus,” said Ambler campus senior Jennifer Shields, who wrote the script and is directing the program. “I am very excited about the willingness of the campus community to share their cultures, as well as their talents, with the school.”

In a high spirited, good-natured way, the celebration seeks to educate people about the many cultures that take this time of year to celebrate traditions, some of which date back centuries.

While some of these holidays may sound familiar, many people may not know their origins. And for globally celebrated holidays like Christmas and Hanukkah, many countries have their own unique traditions.

• Bodhi Day (Enlightenment Day): Bodhi Day honors the enlightenment of Siddhartha Gautama — the Buddha. Buddhists observe the importance of this event by celebrating Bodhi Day usually on the eighth of December. The day is observed in many ways, including prayer, meditation and teachings.

• Christmas: Both Roman Catholics and followers of the Protestant faiths celebrate the birth of the Christian Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, according to the date agreed upon by the Western Church in the fifth century. In contrast, Orthodox Catholics of the Eastern Rite celebrate Christmas according to earlier practices, which follow the Julian calendar and place the holiday on January 6. The addition of the gift-bearing Santa Claus is primarily connected with the American and British traditions.

• Diwali: One of the most important festivals of the year for Hindus, it combines a number of celebrations to honor different gods and goddesses and events in their lives as described by the Hindu Tradition. Lamps are lit for the entire five days of Diwali beside roads, streams, edges of roofs, and on window sills to enable Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of prosperity, to find her way to every home.

• Día de los Reyes (Three Kings Day): Also known as the Epiphany, Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes) is a Christian celebration that commemorates the Biblical story of the three kings - Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar - who followed the star of Bethlehem to bring gifts to the Christ child. This religious holiday is widely celebrated in the Hispanic community, particularly in Puerto Rico, Mexico, and especially by Mexican-Americans. Traditionally in Mexico, Three Kings Day was the gift-giving time, rather than Christmas day. In some regions of Mexico, it was customary for children to leave their shoes out on the night of Jan. 5, often filling them with hay for the camels, in hopes that the Three Kings would be generous. In Puerto Rico on the Eve of the Epiphany children traditionally collect hay, straw, or grass and place it in boxes or containers under their beds for the same purpose.

• Hanukkah: Often referred to as the Festival of Lights, the holiday commemorates the victory of the Jewish people, led by the Maccabee family, over the Syrian Greeks in 165 B.C.E. The Hanukkah story explains that when the Jews went to reclaim and rededicate (Hanukkah means “rededication”) the Holy Temple, they discovered only enough oil to keep the holy lamp burning for one day. The oil, however, miraculously lasted eight days, the time needed to secure a new supply. Hanukkah is celebrated by lighting a candle on the Menorah on each of the eight nights of the celebration. Children enjoy playing with a driedle, a top. Foods fried in oil, such as potato pancakes and jelly doughnuts, are holiday favorites.

• Kwanzaa:  Kwanzaa was started in the United States in 1966 by California State University Black Studies Professor Dr. Maulana Karenga. "Kwanzaa" means the first fruits of the harvest and is patterned after an East African Harvest Festival. Kwanzaa is a unique American holiday that pays tribute to the rich cultural roots of Americans of African ancestry. Symbols of Kwanzaa are set upon a low table laden with tropical fruits and vegetables. The observance includes story telling about the seven principles of Kwanzaa: Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (Self-determination), Ujima (Collective work and responsibility), Ujamma (Cooperative economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity), and Imani (Faith).

• La Navidad: On December 24, families gather to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Depending on the area of South America in which the family is located, presents are opened on December 24 or January 6 — when the Three Kings brought gifts to Jesus.

• Ramadan and Eid el-Fitr: Eid el-Fitr, or “Feast of Breaking the Fast,” is held at the completion of Ramadan, the month of fasting for the Islamic faith. Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic lunar calendar, is a time when Muslims throughout the world fast daily and concentrate on their faith through worship and contemplation. Ramadan is of particular importance to Muslims since it is believed to be the month in which the first verses of the Holy Quran were revealed by Allah to the Prophet Muhammad. At the end of Ramadan, the festive three-day holiday of Eid el-Fitr is celebrated by attending special congregational prayers in the morning and visiting the homes of friends and family for large meals. In some cities, fairs are also held to celebrate the holiday.

• Oshugatsu: The Japanese New Year is a traditional festival which has been celebrated for centuries and has its own unique customs, such as sending New Years postcards, and playing holiday games. In ancient times, the Japanese New Year was based on the same Chinese calendar as the Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese New Year. Since 1873, Japan has followed the same months as the Gregorian calendar, so January 1 is the official New Year's Day for Japan. It is one of the most important festivals of the entire year.

• New Year's Eve: Celebrated on December 31, the final day of the calendar year and the day before New Year's Day. In the western world, the celebration involves partying with friends and family (or massive throngs in Time’s Square) until the moment of the transition of the year at midnight.

Come celebrate the holidays by learning the cultures and traditions of others and support the Wylie’s Day Foundation.

For more information on the Multicultural Holiday Celebration, contact tua03689@temple.edu.