Happy Midsummer!

Hard to believe that the longest day of the year is tomorrow! I've figured out how we're going to celebrate St. John's Day. I've got my Finnish flag all ready to fly, and a menu figured out, more or less. I think we'll have fish with a creamy cucumber salad, some potatoes, a berry dessert, with candles and lots of flowers on the table. Sounds nice, doesn't it? I found this citation at an excellent, and well-researched Astrology site, and it explains a lot, enjoy:

St John's Day, June 24:
The Christian Midsummer Festival

June 24, marking the Birth of Saint John the Baptist, is St John's Day, a major Christian Feast. It is one of the "quarter days", signalling the beginning of each quarter of the year and welcoming each of the four seasons.St John the Baptist, baptising Jesus These holidays were communally celebrated during the "Age of Faith", reassigned from already established astrologically-based pagan festivities. The other quarter days are Christmas on December 25, Lady Day (Annunciation) on March 25 and Michaelmas on September 29.

According to the Gospel of Luke, John the Baptist was the cousin of Jesus Christ (the great soul that Christians believe to be the Son of God, the redeemer, or messiah). As the forerunner of the messiah, John is a very important saint. Jesus once said of his cousin: "Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist" - Matthew 11:11

The birth of Jesus (Christmas) is celebrated in December at the Winter Solstice (the birth of the Sun, as the Sun begins to grow in light) and the Bible indicates that John was born six months before Jesus (Luke 1:26), so his birth celebrates the Summer Solstice, as the Sun begins to diminish in light. John understood that his role was to prepare the way for Christ, and then to step aside. "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). This is a clear reference to the
astrological key that, when turned in the lock, opens the door to a deeper understanding of the nature of religion.

And a note about decorations and menu!

In Sweden [presumably Finland too!?], flowers are an important aspect of the Midsummer festival. Girls and women weave wreaths of flowers to wear in their hair for the day. Wreaths or bouquets are traditionally made with seven or nine different types of wildflowers. Homes are similarly decorated: a flower wreath may be hung from the ceiling to bring blessing to the house and a pair of young birch branches put at the front door..... Family and friends get together and feast on pickled herring, boiled potatoes, sour cream, crisp bread, beer and schnapps, followed by strawberries or fresh fruit for dessert.

So, grab a friend, some flowers, head outside, and enjoy the summer evening! I certainly will.


Credit to Astrology.com for the research, their References:

Summer Festivals: St John's Day, Folk Customs of the Carpatho-Rusyns. This is an extensive article and well worth a look.
St John the Baptist, Catholic Online. This is part of a huge resource on Catholicism, with excellent calendars for feast days, saints, patron saints, angels etc.
The Witches' Sabbats, a valuable on line collection of articles by Mike Nichols on the important pagan festivals
J. G. Frazer: The Golden Bough, MacMillan & Co. Ltd, London, 1923
A. Hislop: The Two Babylons, Loizeaux Brothers; 2nd edition (July 1990). Now out of print, see The Two Babylons on line
M. D. Magee Sun Gods as Atoning Saviours an online resource investigating the origins of Christian and Jewish teachings
B. G. Walker: The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, Harper & Row, NY 1983
R. Graves: The White Goddess, Faber & Faber, London 1961

St John's Day ideas

Doing this research about St John's Day - or Midsummer - has filled me with all sorts of ideas. I knew that his day was in the summer, but had never really fully thought about the impact it would have, religiously, spiritually, celebration-ally (is that even a word?). I mean, for one thing, usually saints' days are celebrated on the day of their martyrdom, not their birth into this world (unlike Christmas Day and St. John's Day). And for the days to be celebrated so similarly, has gotten me to thinking of - what else - FOOD! Menu planning for Christmas is always a big deal in our household. A concrete way to focus the celebration. We're enthusiastic about recognizing holidays [Holy Days] and bringing the sacred, noticing the passing of the year, into every day life.

There was a whole sermon on this topic by the Rev. Judith Taw Beck that I loved. About how lots of Celtic Christian Spirituality was centered around household devotionals and how housework could be transformed into a type of meditation/devotion whereby through physical repetition, concentration and prayer, women could connect to the Divine. [I may be slaughtering the ideas she put forth, but that was what I came away with.] That prayer could happen anywhere and anytime, and that it was possible to make even the most mundane actions, like washing dishes, sublime, by finding a way to thank God for the moment and acknowledge God's greatness by acknowledging our frailty and smallness.

Anyway, back to food. Now I'm trying to think of ways to bring St. John's Day "up to the level" of Christmas in my Holy Day planning. So far, I've thought of the "Quail in Rose Petal Sauce" from the movie/novel "Like Water for Chocolate" as the centerpiece. Roses being a central theme in Mid-Summer since this is when they bloom, especially in northern climes. Fire would need to be present. I live in a city and we can't have bonfires, but maybe Tiki torches would do. Salads, cool drinks [or maybe Flaming Drinks??], fresh fruit, oooh - a peach and tomato salad.... cucumber salads, water melon. Mmmmm. I have a plan. This is good. Any menu recommendations are welcome!