We will mark the back-to-back midwinter feasts of
Brigit’s Day and Candlemas at Historic New Bridge Landing, 1201-1209 Main Street, River Edge, NJ 07661 from
1 to 5 P.M. on January 30, 2011, with demonstrations of candle making and a special exhibit of antique lighting devices, ranging from a 2,000-year-old oil lamp to examples of the earliest light bulbs. Historian Kevin Wright will talk at 2 P.M. on “Seeing the Past In A Different Light.”
The Steuben House, best known example of Bergen Dutch sandstone architecture and a Revolutionary War landmark, will display examples of the Historical Society’s collection of local artifacts and folk art. The Demarest House, recently restored by the Blauvelt-Demarest Foundation, also displays historic furnishings of local manufacture or use. The replica Out Kitchen offers demonstrations of open-hearth cooking. Seasonal refreshments are served à la carte in the Campbell-Christie House, a restored 18th-century tavern. Handmade Brigit’s Crosses, woven of reeds, will be available in the Gift Shop. For info, call 201-343-9492 or visit:
http://www.bergencountyhistory.orgBrigit’s Day and Candlemas come midway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, when snowdrops, the first flower of spring, make their appearance, signaling nature’s awakening from winter’s sleep. Candlemas is named for the blessing of candles, used to protect homes from lightning, evil spirits, and for procession through farm field and orchard. As evidenced by Groundhog’s Day, weather prognostication was commonly practiced in anticipation of spring sowing. Hence, the saying, “If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year. Another old English proverb proclaimed, “If Candlemas be fair and bright, winter has another flight. If Candlemas brings clouds and rain, winter will not come again.” Because pancakes resembled the golden disc of the sun, they were traditionally served on Candlemas.
In ancient Ireland, Brigit was revered as patroness of learned insight, the blacksmith’s forge and healing—all arts associated with fire—and hence with poetry, craftsmanship and medicine. As the provider of all sustenance and agricultural bounty, she was associated in folklore with the cow and its nourishing milk. Her feast coming when the winter larder was nearly empty and milk scarce, womenfolk “gathered a drop” of milk for churning on Brigit’s Eve. Those complaining of a dry dairy were reminded, “It won’t be scarce very long now as St. Brigit and her white cow will be coming round soon.”
On Brigit’s Eve, each family boiled and drained potatoes, with every member, young and old, taking a turn with the masher. The pot was placed in the middle of the kitchen floor on a sheath of straw. The mashed potatoes were served with a large lump of butter nesting in the center, with men eating from a large dish and women from the pot. Special crosses (crois Bhríde), representing the wheel of the sun, were woven from the straw and strategically hung in the house and outbuildings for protection.
Womenfolk also honored their holy protectress by placing a piece of unwashed linen, called Brigit’s Brat, on the window sill in the belief that Brigit, traveling the countryside on the eve of her feast, would touch and bless it, endowing the cloth with healing powers. A piece torn from the Brat was given to every female in the household, usually to be sewn into some garment for protection.
