Bread on the Christmas Eve table: should it be included in the twelve dishes?

In the past, no Lithuanian holiday was complete without bread. Bread was the symbolic meal that the whole family shared at the table on Christmas Eve. The sharing of bread is a symbol of family unity, gratitude, forgiveness and ergo. It is placed in the middle of the table, in the most honorable place. Traditionally, bread ends up on the Christmas Eve table in as many as three forms: rye bread, Christmas bread and Christmas Eve.

"Bread in general in our language is synonymous with food and abundance. Naturally, it was also part of the year-round celebrations and feasts. In ancient times, feasts were inseparable from various rites. And the ghosts of the ancestors are always invited to them. It is in the Christmas Eve rites that the rituals of inviting ghosts have survived the most to this day, Christmas Eve, and in the past – Christmas Eve – the ritual dish of these holidays," said ethnologist Gailė Vanagienė, coordinator of cultural activities at the Vilnius Ethnic Culture Centre.

Christmas Eve – ghost bread

Christmas Eve was intended to feed the ghosts of the dead. It was believed that ghosts had no body, so their bread was small. There are many relatives who have left Anapilin, so the hostesses of Christmas Eve baked in abundance, hoping to satiate all the ghosts of the family. Christmas Eve was also left on the table overnight so that the ghosts would be strengthened.

According to the ethnologist, Christmas Eve is a dish that is currently being reborn. It is made from a wide variety of soaked and sprouted grains: wheat, rye, beans and peas (these are also associated with the afterlife), flavored with honey and poppy seeds, nuts. As is typical for ritual meals, it was shared by all those gathered, and it was not possible to give it to strangers, except for guests and beggars who came.

"On Christmas Eve, guests are usually not visited, they eat with their own, but if a stranger visits, it is appropriate to receive him and feed him. Most of the time, beggars who were considered mediators between this world and the other world stumbled," said G. Vanagienė.

Rituals for family unity

During Christmas Eve dinner, there are quite a few rituals dedicated to family unity and erection. It is both a gathering of the whole family at a common table, and the sharing of a symbolic loaf of bread, Christmas or Christmas Eve.

From Pakruojis district, you can take over the beautiful tradition that prevailed there: to cut bread in such a way that each family member would have a slice, and each of them would be connected by a thin layer. We put such bread in the middle of the table on a folded towel. We put Christmas and Christmas Eve on a plate next to it. This custom has been described by Nijolė Marcinkevičienė in the book "From Grain to Loaf".

"It was believed that bread is a symbol of erode, and its sharing strengthens mutual harmony," G. Vanagienė emphasizes the significance of bread in the Lithuanian worldview.

Only later are other dishes placed on the table around the bread in the center: a jug of fermented juice, kissels, nuts, apples, fried fish, poppy seeds, herring with various condiments, and other dishes.

The Darkest Night – Waiting for the Light and Reconciliation

A loaf placed in the most honorable place, next to the householder, is believed to give power, health and ergot to all the food nearby. The master would distribute a slice of bread to each member of the family, so that everyone would symbolically reconcile and forgive each other for the sins of the previous year. The resulting slice was kissed, sprinkled with salt and eaten with fermented juice or simply well water.

According to Snieguolė Šoblinskienė, the head of product development at the country's largest bread producer Vilniaus Duona, bread was a ritual meal of many holidays and rites. It is still part of the Lithuanian identity, and in many families the customs are still alive not to throw away bread, not to put an upside-down loaf, and to kiss it after throwing it on the ground.

Sacred attitude to bread

"Holidays are a good opportunity to remember and cherish the customs of our ancestors. A sacred attitude to bread helps to convey many other values that are not subject to time: harmony in the family, diligence, respect, unity, and the ability to share. It is not for nothing that baking bread was equated with a creation of the world, and the preparation of rye bread was considered a sacred ritual. Even in our bakeries, there was a time when songs were sung for kneaded bread," said the bread expert.

According to S. Šoblinskienė, no holiday in her own family is complete without bread, including Christmas Eve. And bread is necessarily included in the 12 dishes on the table.

"My own favorite is the old whole grain sour bread, which has preserved a recipe that has been cherished for decades. It is coarser, rich in fiber, and goes well with traditional Christmas Eve dishes such as beets, fried fish or herring. The grandson even calls rye bread "the most delicious bun," said S. Šoblinskienė.

She advises to flavor herring with toast crumbs, which gives it a pleasant spice.

"My roots are in Suvalkija, so maybe the tradition came from that region, we always make herring in batter for the Christmas Eve table. Our family's Christmas Eve is not complete without it. Also, like my grandmother, I definitely try to do something with my own hands – bake, knit. And the most important thing is that we all gather at the same table," said S. Šoblinskienė.

As G. Vanagienė emphasized, in addition to national traditions, family traditions are also very important: recipes, rites and rituals passed down from generation to generation help to preserve our heritage.