Bringing light into the dark season if you aren't a Christian

This is something that has been on my mind for a while. I was raised Christian and as such had been exposed (mostly with joy) to a lot of the customs and rituals of that particular religion. I've since left church and consider Jediism my only religion. My wife is agnostic. We have two kids and I believe that rituals and customs are essential to their upbringing. So I don't necessarily want to follow Christian tradition (not that I have anything against it, it's just that I personally don't believe in it) but would still like to bring some light into winter and fill the void that the lack of a Christmas celebration has left for our family with something meaningful.

My plan so far is to concentrate on light itself. To fill the home inside and outside with light (yes, I stole that idea from what is a Christmas tradition in many places), with symbols of winter etc. We've also explained to our kids that we're doing this because winter is (or is perceived to be) the cold, low-energy season of the year and bringing some light into it is a way to counter that.

So to those who are in a similar position: what rituals do you have? Are there any "official" Jedi rituals for this time of the year?

i am not a christian , but already my house is filling up with sparkly lights , nice scented candles and soon a x mas tree , we love the x mas traditions , my daughter and i go out for food in a traditional restaurant where we can eat turkey besides the dinners we have with expanded family and friends , we dont spend it at home a lot. But my house is extra cosy in the cold months , i dont know if that is a tradition or more of a habit , i do not know of any Jedi rituals for winter ?

MartaLina wrote: i am not a christian , but already my house is filling up with sparkly lights , nice scented candles and soon a x mas tree , we love the x mas traditions , my daughter and i go out for food in a traditional restaurant where we can eat turkey besides the dinners we have with expanded family and friends , we dont spend it at home a lot. But my house is extra cosy in the cold months , i dont know if that is a tradition or more of a habit , i do not know of any Jedi rituals for winter ?

The tree is up for debate in our household I'm in favour of having an artificial tree as I'm trying to keep my ecological footprint low. I think a selection of meaningful rituals for Jedi couldn't hurt. While perhaps not essential to the journey, many of us have families and kids and rituals have a character forming element to them as well. They'd have to exemplify Jedi ideals and should be easily understandable to someone who isn't capable (yet) to understand the deeper philosophical background. What could such a a ritual be for the holiday season?

I agree , but first lets talk about that tree I am all for traditions but i am wary of just trading one for the other , because i have to be a Jedi everyday i dont want to rely on traditions fixed to a certain time of the year , neither do i want to be bound , being free of the Jewish traditions is one reason i turned to Jedissm

One thing to remember is that almost none of the Christmas traditions and rituals are actually Christian in origin. They were almost all borrowed from other religions, generally so that it would be easier to transition the population to Christianity when Rome instituted Christianity as it's official religion. Even it's timing isn't Christian as the birth of Jesus didn't happen in the winter, they just wanted to give the Pagans a holiday to celebrate in place of the solstice.

I put a tree up if I have space (right now my apartment is pretty full so I doubt we'll put one up this year) but my wife and I usually put up lights and some Santa stuff. I like the idea of focusing on light, and Marta that tree is fantastic!

My suggestion is to try to figure out what this time of year really means to you, deep inside. Is it a spirit of giving? A celebration of the days starting to get longer (finally!)? The birth of Jesus? Why do you feel the need to celebrate?

Once you figure that out you can build your own traditions and rituals based on that.

nice camera work, looks like that tree is covered in miniature light sabers If we stick with the tree, what would ornaments be that represent the Jedi values and philosophy?

Goken is absolutely right. None of the "Christmas" traditions are original. They are all taken from much older pagan traditions that surrounded Yule. Yule is the celebration of the return of the sun (not the Son) after the longest night of the year, the winter solstice. It is a celebration of continued life and the promise of new life after the darkness. I find it a perfect Jedi sort of celebration lol.

True, today's traditions are often amalgamations of various pre-existing customs, later cultural influences (Santa Claus) etc. It's actually rather interesting to see what happens if you strip the most obviously religious aspects from them and see what's left - for Christmas, I believe there's a lot left - the tree, the lights, getting together, giving, giving thanks, community etc. - the latter few are common to the human existence and to most religions, for example.

Kyrin Wyldstar wrote: Yule is the celebration of the return of the sun (not the Son) after the longest night of the year, the winter solstice. It is a celebration of continued life and the promise of new life after the darkness. I find it a perfect Jedi sort of celebration lol.

I agree - nicely put

I'm in favour of having an artificial tree as I'm trying to keep my ecological footprint low.

I'm not sure that works all that well.

If we stick with the tree

No idea why we would? I don't find anything particularly appealing, or necessary about hacking down a shrub for a few days entertainment.

What would ornaments be that represent the Jedi values and philosophy?

One of the appeals of Jediism is the lack of ornaments and idolatry.


Of course, for me December falls in high summer, so Yule celebrations don't carry much weight either

(There are some local pagans who use an adjusted calender so they can have their festivals at the appropriate time)



I've never really had a "midwinter" celebration or event, so I'm not sure what would be appropriate and a useful reflection of Jedi beliefs and practices.