Roots of our festive traditions

BRINGING plants into the house to celebrate the festive season has long been part of our Christmas tradition.

- DIARMUID GAVIN

In this turbulent and fast-moving world, where we often think the spirit and meaning behind our festivities are lost through commercialism and social media, it's wonderful to take a moment to realise that the traditions which we will embrace over the next couple of weeks are often centuries old with fascinating origins.

Today let's look at some stories behind the Christmas tree, mistletoe and poinsettias. In the 8th century, St Boniface, a Benedictine monk, was travelling through Germany converting people to Christianity. He noticed people who he considered to be pagans paying homage to an old oak tree. Taking an axe he cut the tree down and instantly in its place a conifer is said to have grown. Much as St Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to tell the story of the Holy Trinity, St Boniface used the triangular form of the conifer to share the same message and so it became associated with Christmas.