Krampusnacht. The Feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated in parts of Europe on 6 December.
On the preceding evening of 5 December, Krampus Night or Krampusnacht, the wicked hairy devil appears on the streets. Sometimes accompanying St. Nicholas and sometimes on his own, Krampus visits homes and businesses.
The paranormal should be kept in the season!!
Beginning around Halloween, the most paranormal time of year evokes memories from ancient times, pagan festivals, and as we know today, Krampusnacht.
St. Nick is the patron saint of kids. Krampus is a force children don’t want to deal with.. with whips and punishments!
The history of Krampus dates back much further than just modern Christianity and movie theater scripts.
The notion of a Christmas demon has been around for some time.
And the parables of Christmas showcase how this time of year is a dark and bleak moment before the rebirth and rise of the sun, the solstice where the days begin to lengthen again.. When the ‘son’ is born.
Some believe Krampus is a pagan character who eventually transformed into the modern Christian version of the devil himself. Pagans today celebrate Krampus with runs, modern festivals, and homages to the night air as it descends over the land.
Krampus has been the subject of widespread European attention for centuries. Over the past few years he has regained some official authority as the pagan beast of the holiday season because of his reemergence in pop culture and movies that are named after him.
In some European lure, St. Nicholas and Krampus travel together, judging children as they meet them.
Even when I was a child in Holy Spirit School in Mt. Carmel, we celebrated St. Nicholas day with style: Kids would put their shoes in the hallway until they heard bells, knowing that St. Nick stopped by and gave candy. IF there was coal? ….a whole other story.
So today.. as Krampus looms after nightfall, lock up your house tight and hope you’ll hear the bells of St. Nick instead of the chains of the one..the only…Krampus.
