Christmas Tree While the practice of placing a Christmas tree in Christian homes seems to be secular, it is a blending of mixed traditions over time that have come to have deep Christian symbolism: the green is a sign of life and hope at the seasonal time of dying, candles or Christmas lights and the Star of Bethlehem atop the tree are signs of the burning light of Christ in a time of spiritual darkness, and ornaments hearken back to decorations of fruit (originally apples) and pastries on the “tree of paradise” in Medieval skits on December 24 – the feast of Adam and Eve, which remembered the promise that a Messiah would come, and developed into signs of the fruits of paradise Christians hope to attain someday. (Dues) Although it has become common in the United States to take down the Christmas tree and decorations soon after the merriment of December 25 has subsided, traditionally, Catholics did not put up their Christmas trees until after noon on Christmas Eve. Tree trimming parties on Christmas Eve were common, and we see this in classic Christmas movies such as It’s A Wonderful Life or in Charles Dickens’ classic tale A Christmas Carol. Since the purpose of the Christmas tree and the decorations was to celebrate the feast Christmas, decorating was saved until Christmas actually arrived on Christmas Eve ”Of course, if you wait until Christmas Eve to purchase your Christmas tree, you might end up with a sad, spindly looking stick like the one that Charlie Brown brings to the Christmas pageant in A Charlie Brown Christmas. Holding off on purchasing a tree until Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday in Advent, and then decorating it as late as possible is a reasonable compromise… Even if circumstances make it necessary to put up the Christmas tree earlier in Advent, we can still maintain some sense of the Advent season by not lighting the lights until Christmas Eve, or by putting out our most precious decorations (and perhaps the star for the top of the tree) only on Christmas Eve. Such practices increase the sense of expectation, especially among young children, and make Christmas Day all the more joyful.” (Richert)
Dues, Greg. Catholic Customs & Traditions: A Popular Guide. 23rd Publications: Mystic, Connecticut, 1989. Richert, Scott P. “When Should You Put Up Your Christmas Tree? Is There A Proper Time?” http://catholicism.about.com/od/catholicliving/f/Xmas_Tree_Up.htm About.com, 2014.