Harvest thank celebration
the harvest thank celebration is celebrated, in order to thank you God for the harvest.
With the ceremony, which is often organized in a church, arable crops, harvested grain and other one are decoratively set up. A “harvest crown” twisted made of grain or Weinstöcken often becomes in one Prozession by the Gemeindegebiet carried. In rural people-church municipalities numerous municipality members meet to the services.
With the harvest thank celebration over sufficiently food is to be reminded too of the work in agriculture and gardens and of it that it does not lie alone in the hand of humans,order.
Thus it expresses also the probably most popular song to harvest thanks of Matthias Claudius :
- “We plow, and we strew the seed on the country,
- but growth and prospering are located in the sky hand:
- that opens itself with quiet blowing mildly and secretly
- andträuft, if we go to home, stature and prospering drauf.
- All good gift comes ago from God the gentleman,
- drum thanks it, thanks, drum thanks it, thanks and hopes for it! “
history
the origin of the harvest thank celebration goes back into the pre-Christian time.In central and Northern Europe harvest thanks (Haustblot) became to the autumn Tagundnachtgleiche (23. September) with a thank victim celebrated. There were similar rites in Israel, Greece or in the Roman realm. To the Judentum see. about: Exodus 34,22; Numbers 28, Deuteronomium 16.
In that catholic church is a harvest thank celebration since that 3. Century occupies. An official component of the church yearly is not it however until today. “The welfare-historically oriented year of the church does not know an E. - thank celebration “(Rupert Berger: Article “harvest, harvest thank celebration. II. Liturgically ", encyclopedia for theology and church (3.Auflage), volume3, frame. 821). The custom of the thanks for a good harvest became usual for many years also in many catholic municipalities nevertheless, so that beside Kräuterweihen (to 15. August), Quatember, Erstlingsfrüchtesegnung in the catholic church the Eucharistie on first October Sunday often as “thanksfor the fruit of the earth and the human work " on the altar surrounded by harvest thank gifts one celebrates.
Germany
since the Middle Ages one knows different data for a harvest thank celebration. After the reformation was patriated in Evangelist municipalities of the Michaelistag or the Michaelistagneighbouring Sunday . The celebration becomes in the Evangelist churches of Germany in accordance with a royal decree in Prussia in the year 1773 on Sunday after Michaelis (29. September) committed. The Evangelist free churches usually celebrate like the Roman-catholic church the celebration on first Sundayin October. In the year 1972 this date was specified by the German bishop conference. At some places other dates are usual, then for instance the Moselgemeinden commits the celebration after the wine vintage on second November Sunday.
