The traditional activities on Christmas Eve are Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, Christmas Eve Concert and Christmas Eve Ball.
1. Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony
On the night of Christmas Eve, many cities will set up a tall Christmas tree in the core business district or park square. That night, people will gather at this location and join together for the lighting ceremony. There is usually a musical recital and a fireworks display that fills the atmosphere with joy and blessings. This is a very typical Christmas Eve event for all.
2. Christmas Eve Concert
On the night of Christmas Eve, many singers or music groups hold special concerts to sing some holiday songs, funny programs and dance performances to spend Christmas Eve with their fans. The concerts are free and can take place in different venues such as indoors, outdoors or live online.
3. Christmas Eve Dance
Christmas Eve Dance is usually held by some organizations or schools. That night, there are a lot of people who will dress up in nice clothes and come together to dance and socialize, as well as a lot of Christmas-themed games and activities that allow people to meet each other and make friends.
Origin of Christmas Eve
On the night of Jesus' birth, the shepherds who were watching over their flocks in the wilderness suddenly heard voices from heaven telling them about the birth of Jesus. According to the Bible, Jesus came to earth to save the world and be the Savior of all mankind, so the angels spread the news to more people through these shepherds.
It is said that on Christmas Eve, 1818, Moore, an obscure country priest in a small Austrian town called Oppendorf, discovered that the church organ had been chewed up by rats and it was too late to repair it.
How to celebrate Christmas, Moore mopes about. Suddenly, he remembered the Gospel of Luke, which tells of the birth of Jesus, when the angels, after announcing the good news to the shepherds on the outskirts of White Cold, sang the carol, "Glory to God in heaven, and peace on earth for the good people." He was inspired to write a hymn based on these two verses and named it "Peaceful Night".
Moore wrote the lyrics and showed them to Gruber, an elementary school teacher in his town, and asked him to compose the music. Gruber was so moved by the lyrics that he composed the music and sang it in church the next day, where it was a big hit.
Then two merchants passed by and learned the song, which they sang for King Wilhelm IV of Prussia, who listened to it and praised it so much that he ordered "Christmas Eve" to be one of the songs that must be sung in churches across the country at Christmas. Thus, this immortal work has been sung to this day.