The Jubilee Year of Hope begins on Christmas Eve, as Pope Francis opens the Holy Doors of St. Peter’s. If you’re one of the 40 million visitors expected to travel to the Eternal City for this extraordinary celebration, the Christmas season provides a great opportunity to start embracing some of Italy’s unique holiday customs ahead of your pilgrimage; customs directly connected the Catholic faith.

Even if you won’t be able to visit Italy next year, it’s not difficult to live a little la dolce vita (the sweet life) by celebrating the coming of our Lord in our hearts and homes, Italian style, with these five very common practices.

As I explain in my forthcoming book, Itay’s Shrines and Wonders: Sacred Spaces, Fascinating Places and Destinations off the Beaten Path, each of Italy’s twenty regions has its own way of applying these traditions that run deep in the Italian culture. However, there is no doubt when traveling to Italy, that Italians are proud of their Catholic heritage and are very eager to show the world how they highlight, the reason for the season, as every effort is connected in some way, shape, or form, to Jesus.  

1) Practicing Giorno di Magro: Abstaining from meat on Christmas Eve. -Pesce or fish is the main star on the Italian dinner table on Christmas Eve.  The types of fish and the cooking preference can vary from region to region but again it's all about the fish serving as another form of abstinence before the major Christmas holiday or a way to eat healthier to purify the body before Christmas.  Baccala or salted Cod fish is a staple along with a frutti di mare (shellfish) and a pasta with a light fish sauce.   

2)  Attending the Vigil or Midnight Mass: Attending the Vigil Mass on Christmas Eve is a common and much-loved practice among Italian Catholics.  They head to their local churches to ring in the holiday with prayerful praise after gathering for fish dinner. And ring in the season they do, with the sound of church bells ringing in the air. 

3)  Creating a Special Presipe-(nativity scene) compliments of St. Francis of Assisi in your home: All over Italy Italians create beautiful nativity scenes often incorporating signature items from their villages or towns.  The presipe is displayed proudly not only in homes and churches but in the main piazzas or town squares, shop windows, even along the roadways placed in caves or niches for travelers to enjoy. St. Francis established the first live nativity in Greccio, Lazio north of Rome.  

4) Singing and/or playing the much loved Italian Christmas carol, Tu scendi dalle Stelle (You descend from the stars): This extremely popular Christmas carol is heard all over Italy not only during Christmas but all the way through the feast of the Epiphany on January 6th.  It was written by St. Alphonsus Liguori in 1744. It is a touching song that reminds us all of the Incarnation. It has special meaning for me, as my father, Michael Annunziato Squillace, a vocalist, would sing this carol every year at our parish’s pre-Midnight Mass concert. In addition to my father’s rendition, I love to listen to recordings of this beautiful song by Luciano Pavarotti and Friar Allesandro, a Franciscan friar based in Assisi. 

5) Keeping that Christmas Tree Up: You won't find any Christmas trees on the curbs or doorsteps right after the holiday.  In Italy, the tree goes up and is decorated on December 8th, for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and remains in the home until at least the feast of the Epiphany on January 6th. 

Buon Natale!

Teresa Tomeo is host of The Catholic Connection on EWTN radio.