Christmas Eve in Poland, known as Wigilia, has some very beautiful traditions. Breaking the Opłatek wafer, caroling, opening gifts, the midnight mass, or Pasterka–these are practices beloved by every Pole and person of Polish descent, including myself. But there exists a stranger side to the way Poles used to celebrate Christmas Eve, filled with mystery and…
Imagine it’s a cold, dark night in a rural hamlet, far away from the nearest center of population. A full moon shines through the crisp, dry air, competing only with the light emanating from the hearth in your neighbor’s thatched hut. The pristine snow glistens in the lunar rays. It’s the dead of winter, in…
On this Wigilia, I would like to share an opłatek with all of my readers and social media followers. For those who may not know, breaking the opłatek wafer at Christmas Eve is an age-old Polish tradition occurring right before supper. First, the father breaks the opłatek in half with the mother. Both wish each…
Many of you enjoyed my article on the Strangest Polish Christmas Eve Superstitions. When I wrote that, I thought I had heard it all. Well I hadn’t. So here’s even more Polish Christmas Eve, or Wigilia superstitions that were once very common in different parts of Poland: Clean Up Your Act In Polish villages on…
Whether you’re only a little bit Polish or have pierogi running through your veins, one of the most beloved and sacred Polish traditions is the breaking of the opłatek on Christmas Eve, or Wigilia. Practiced for centuries, it represents all the good of Christmas—faith, family and friendship. An opłatek is basically the same bread wafer you have…
