In true Polish tradition, Christmas Eve is actually of greater importance than Christmas Day. The opłatek wafer is the “appetizer” before the Christmas Eve meal, known as “Wigilia” or “the vigil” anticipating the birth of the Baby Jesus. No other food is eaten until the opłatek is shared.
Before the meal, the white, Communion-like wafer, usually embossed with a Christmas scene, is broken into pieces, one for each family member. Beginning with the two oldest, originally Grandma and Grandpa, each breaks off a bit of the other’s wafer and they exchange a blessing or wish for the coming year, and a kiss or embrace. Custom dictates that the pieces be saved and eaten only after everyone has shared with the whole family, but I do recall us children being a little too impatient to wait to have our “communion.” The sharing of the opłatek is also a time to reconcile differences and remember those who have gone before us.
The Wigilia meal is traditionally a meatless one. Meals vary from family to family but usually include a special soup (pea soup with sauerkraut and mushrooms at our house) followed by a number of fish dishes, vegetables, pierogi, and fruit.
As my grandparents got older, the Wigilia baton was passed to my mother. Now it has come to my sister and me. Grandma and Grandpa are long gone, but the tradition continues, albeit a slightly Americanized one, and I’m sure that’s fine with them.
What’s important is that we still come together as a family to prepare to welcome our Lord and to pause to express what we mean to each other. That’s what counts, what makes Wigilia so special to me.
So as we gather with our families and friends on Christmas Eve, I wish you “Wesolych swiat!” Merry Christmas!
Susan Capurso is a RENEW International staff member and an avid New York Yankees fan.