Saint Sylvester's Day

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For Silvester and Sylvester (given name and surname), see Sylvester.
For other uses, see Sylvester (disambiguation).

Saint Sylvester's Day
Feast of Saint Sylvester
Reformed
TypeChristian
SignificanceFeast Day of Pope Saint Sylvester I
Final day of the Gregorian calendar
CelebrationsFireworks, Theatre-going, Feasting, Making a toast, Partying[1]
ObservancesAttending a Watchnight Mass, often held around midnight
Date31 December (Western Christianity)
2 January (Eastern Christianity)
FrequencyAnnual
Related toNew Year's Eve, Christmastide, New Year's Day, Feast of the Naming and Circumcision of Jesus, Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

Saint Sylvester's Day, also known as Silvester or the Feast of Saint Sylvester, is the day of the feast of

Eastern churches celebrate Sylvester's feast on a different day from the Western churches, i.e. on 2 January. Saint Sylvester's Day celebrations are marked by church attendance at a Watchnight Mass that is often held around midnight, as well as fireworks, partying, and feasting.[1]

Pope Sylvester I

Saint Sylvester with the Emperor Constantine the Great

Under the reign of

Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Santa Croce Church, and Old St. Peter's Basilica, among others.[3] During the papacy of Sylvester I, the Nicene Creed, which is recited by communicants of the vast majority of the world's Christian denominations, was formulated.[3] Sylvester is said to have healed, in the name of Christ, the emperor Constantine the Great of leprosy.[3] After dying, Sylvester was buried on 31 December in the Catacomb of Priscilla.[3]

Regional traditions

The German city of Rottenburg am Neckar decorated for Christmas and Silvester
Saint Sylvester's Day fireworks in Kraków

Several countries, primarily in Europe, use a variant of Silvester's name as the preferred name for the holiday; these countries include Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, and Slovenia.[4]

Austria and Germany

In the capital of Austria,

Bleigiessen using Silvesterblei (Silvester lead), in which Silvesterblei is melted over a flame in an old spoon and dropped into a bowl of cold water; one's fortune for the coming year is determined by the shape of the lead.[6] If the lead forms a ball (der Ball), luck will roll one's way, while the shape of a star (der Stern) signifies happiness.[7]

Belgium

Christians of Belgium have a tradition that a maiden who does not finish her work by the time of sunset on Saint Silvester's Day will not get married in the year to come.[5]

Brazil

Along with exploding fireworks, the Saint Silvester Road Race, Brazil's oldest and most prestigious running event, takes place on Saint Sylvester's Day and is dedicated to him.[8]

Israel

In Israel, New Year's Eve is referred to as Silvester to distinguish it from Rosh Hashanah—the Jewish New Year—which occurs in either September or October.[9][4]

As some Israelis consider Pope Sylvester to have been an

antisemite, the observation of New Year's Eve has been divisive among parts of the country's Jewish population, and celebrations tend to be relatively modest in comparison to other countries.[10][9][4] In 2014, a report by a wearable technology manufacturer found that an average of 33% of Israelis went to bed before midnight on 31 December; notably, the Silvester is not an official holiday in Israel and January 1 is a regular workday, unless falling on a weekend.[11][4]

Soviet diaspora (such as

cultural awareness.[10]

Italy

On Saint Sylvester's Day, "lentils and slices of sausage are eaten because they look like coins and symbolize good fortune and the richness of life for the coming year."[13]

Switzerland

Main article: Silvesterklaus

On the morning of Saint Sylvester's Day, the children of a Christian family compete with one another to see who can wake up the earliest; the child who arises the latest is playfully jeered.[5] Men have, for centuries, masqueraded as Silvesterklaus on Saint Sylvester's Day.[14]

Ossetia

Main article: Ossetian mythology

As late as the 19th century, the

Ecstasies: Deciphering the Witches' Sabbath) marked parallels between this Ossetian 'combat in ecstasy' and those formerly practiced by the benandanti of Friuli and also by certain other shaman-like figures in Hungary and the Balkans.[16]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 9781741049176
    . The German New Year's Eve is called Silvester in honour of the 4th-century pope under whom the Romans adopted Christianity as their official religion; there's partying all night long.
  2. ISBN 9781612615301
    .
  3. ^
    ISBN 9781568542607
    .
  4. ^ a b c d Cohen, Ariel (31 December 2014). "Celebrating an anti-Semitic pope on Sylvester". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on 31 December 2014. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
  5. ^
    ISBN 9781476607481
    .
  6. ^ "SILVESTER – NEW YEAR'S EVE". mrshea.com. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
  7. ^ "2.0 Silvesterbraeuche – Neujahrsbraeuche". silvestergruesse.de. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
  8. ISBN 9782826307273
    . On New Year's Eve there are fireworks in the streets, and at midnight begins the marathon known as the 'St Sylvester's Day race'.
  9. ^ a b "The 4th-century Pope and the Great Jewish War Over New Year's Day". Haaretz. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  10. ^ a b Kershner, Isabel (30 December 2018). "New Year's Fete From Russia Irks Some in Israel: 'It's Not a Jewish Holiday'". The New York Times.
  11. ^ "On New Year's Eve, Israelis hit hay early". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  12. ^ Weber, Hannah (25 December 2020). "Yolka: the story of Russia's 'New Year tree', from pagan origins to Soviet celebrations". The Calvert Journal. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  13. ISBN 9781101653159
    .
  14. ISBN 9781465579997
    .
  15. ^ Klaproth, Julius Voyage au Mont Caucase et en Géorgie, 2 vols, Paris, 1823 vol. II pp. 223 ff.
  16. ^ Ginzburg, Carlo (2004). Ecstasies: Deciphering the Witches' Sabbath. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

External links

  • Media related to Silvester at Wikimedia Commons
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