'TWas the Night Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house,
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar plums danc'd in their heads,
And Mama in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap--
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter,
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters, and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow,
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below;
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny rein-deer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his courses they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and call'd them by name:
"Now! Dasher, now! Dancer, now! Prancer, and Vixen,
"On! Comet, on! Cupid, on! Dunder and Blixem;
"To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
"Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"
As dry leaves before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of Toys--and St. Nicholas too:
And then in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound:
He was dress'd all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnish'd with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys was flung on his back,
And he look'd like a peddler just opening his pack:
His eyes--how they twinkled! his dimples how merry,
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face, and a little round belly
That shook when he laugh'd, like a bowl full of jelly:
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laugh'd when I saw him in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And fill'd all the stockings; then turn'd with a jirk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.
He sprung to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle:
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight--
Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

-- ACCOUNT OF A VISIT FROM ST. NICHOLAS (from The Troy Sentinel, December 23, 1823, p. 3; repro. Troy, NY: Troy Public Library, 1998)

Exactly 186 years ago today the above poem was first published anonymously. It is completely fictional, of course; but its popularity boomed, and it quickly spread across the nation. It was one of the most influential shapers of contemporary Christmas celebrations in the United States along with Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol first published on December 19, 1843 and other fictional works of the era.

On the surface the poem bears so many similarities with today's Christmas celebration that we often overlook the significant changes. For instance, in the poem St. Nicholas traveled along the ground between houses, but today we visualize Santa traveling more or less entirely by flight perhaps because of the advent of aircraft in the twentieth century. Other differences include the miniature stature of St. Nick, his rein-deer, and his sleigh in the poem. Today we tend to view Santa and his company as full-sized, which makes explaining his journey through chimneys much more difficult than it once was. Although in the poem St. Nick is described as dressed in fur, his clothes are soiled with ashes and soot and are nowhere referred to as being red as is commonly held today. Also, in the poem he is described as smoking a pipe; whereas today Santa is usually represented tobacco-free and often with glasses.

Despite the changes to Christmas celebrations since ACCOUNT OF A VISIT FROM ST. NICHOLAS was published, it is still recognizable as Christmas by today's standards. Historically speaking, Christmas has gone through much more dramatic overhauls than the relatively minor differences noted above. For many years it resembled Mardis Gras more than anything else, which is why it was in jeopardy of being completely discarded in early America. Frankly, if Dickens, Irving, and other authors of their day had not remade Christmas as a family holiday, then it is likely that we would not celebrate it at all today.

So although I would like to express my gratitude to those who rescued Christmas from the trash-heap of history, I also would like to point out that all these fairy tales have nothing to do with the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas is at its roots a religious holiday -- hence Christ's Mass. It was begun, no doubt with some errors, to remember the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. What are we coming to when we deny the true account of Jesus Christ and yet propagate the lie to our own children that a fairy-tale figure is true? And even worse we feel good about it and find it a reason to celebrate. Perhaps we really are trapped in a horrible pit. God help us. May you enjoy a Merry Christmas with the true joy of the season: the fulfillment of God's prophesy made in Genesis 3:15 to save humanity from our sin through His incarnation.