The House of John Knox

Blogger: Amber Schamel

The city of Edinburgh, Scotland was home to one of the greatest voices of the Reformation, John Knox. When we visited the city in Spring of 2017, we had the privilege of visiting the reformer's home. It was a fascinating stop, and I'd love to share some of it with you today.

The first thing you'll notice as you approach the dwelling is the inscription above the door. "Love God above all and your neighbor."

This biblical inscription was placed there by James Mossman, the goldsmith who inhabited the dwelling prior to Knox. The building dates back to the 1470's, which makes it the oldest surviving and original house on the Royal Mile.

As you enter the building, you encounter what would have been a shop or business. The home or family apartment was situated above the shop. These were called Luckenbooths in medieval times.

Illustration of the building during Knox's day.

The bottom level of the dwelling is now a museum of plaques and historical tidbits, as well as a beautiful tribute to the reformer and his impact on Scotland and Europe. It was very interesting to wander through before going to the upper levels of the home.

Prior to John Knox's family inhabiting the home, it was home to a goldsmith that refashioned the Scottish crown for King James V. This part of the house's history is a large part of the focus, since John Knox only lived there for a short period of time.

Tools of the Goldsmith trade

Tidbit on the Goldsmiths

The main part of the house is what is known as the Oak room. This is where guests would have been entertained and is therefore the most ornate part of the dwelling. It has beautiful oak paneling, an elaborate fireplace, and carved moldings.

The Oak Room

Oak Room Fireplace

It is believed that John Knox only dwelled in this house during the siege of Edinburgh castle, however it is also asserted that he died in this place. However there is no evidence to verify this legend.

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Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Schamel writes riveting stories that bring HIStory to life. She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".  She lives in Colorado and spends half her time volunteering in the Ozarks. Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at www.AmberSchamel.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!

Christmas in Colonial America

While Christmas celebrations are quite common in this century, it was not always so in America. In fact, our first settlers—both the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth in 1620, and the Puritans who established Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630—were adamantly opposed to the tradition, which they viewed as un-Christian.

Both immigrant groups were part of the Protestant Reformation movement that opposed many things associated with the church in Rome. Catholics had adopted the holiday based on the ancient Roman celebration called Saturnalia, a feast of lights that involved drinking and feasting. Their reasoning was to fix a definite date of birth to prove the personhood of the Christ child, yet most Christians balked at the unknown (according to Scripture) date. Puritans and Pilgrims rejected the holiday and its connection with the pagan Roman tradition celebrated on December 25. 

The colonists were not the first to renounce Christmas as a religious holiday, since the Puritans in England in 1647 had already banned the celebration. The reformists in America followed suit in 1659 when the General Court of Massachusetts Bay Colony declared that “whoever shall be found observing any such day as Christmas or the like, either by forbearing of labor, feasting, or any other such way” was subject to a fine of five shillings. 

During the same time period, the Assembly of Connecticut prohibited the keeping of Christmas and any saint’s day. 

The Puritans believed that Christmas was just a pagan custom, adapted as a Christian one, without any Biblical basis. The way revelers celebrated Christmas did not endear the Pilgrims or Puritans to the holiday. “Men dishonor Christ more in the 12 days of Christmas then in all the twelve months besides,” wrote 16^thcentury clergyman, Hugh Latimer. 

The Christmas was neither “silent” nor “holy,” involving gambling, excess drinking, and rowdy, licentious behavior. 

Businesses and schools in Massachusetts remained open on December 25, until it was declared a public holiday in 1856.

But Christmas customs varied in the colonies, depending on religious affiliations. Most Virginians were devout Anglicans and the weeks leading up to December 25 were a time of penance and reflection on one’s spiritual condition. 

Quakers in Philadelphia, as well as Presbyterians, did not partake in Christmas festivities.

But Anglicans, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, and Moravians did observe Christmas day and all its celebrations in the Middle Atlantic colonies as well as in the South. 

Peter Kalm, a Swedish visitor to Philadelphia in 1749, made note of the Christmas decorations—green boughs, garlands made of holly, ivy, and mountain laurel hanging from the church roof, walls, and pillars. 

Although historic areas now use fruits to decorate for Christmas, it is likely that these were far too precious a commodity as food in Colonial America—except perhaps by the wealthy. 

Music was a huge part of celebrations. Philip Fithian of Virginia wrote in his diary on Christmas Eve in 1775 about singing hymns written by Isaac Watts, which seems ironic since Watts was an English Congregationalist minister and theologian. Congregationalists in Massachusetts abhorred the idea of Christmas. Watts actually wrote “Joy to the World,” a favorite Christmas carol. 

Some churches offered Christmas worship services, but this religious observance seemed to play a minor role in comparison to feasting and revelry. The wealthy in the South provided lavish feasts and entertainments, including balls and fox hunts. The less well-off did not celebrate with such splendor but did participate with simpler food and festivities. 

While Southern colonists brought in the English customs of yule logs, kissing under the mistletoe, and decorating with greenery, German immigrants brought the German folk figure of Christkindel, who brings children their gifts at Christmas. 

Many cultures, traditions, and beliefs influenced the holiday of Christmas during colonial times. They were as diverse as the people who came here to settle in America.

May your Christmas be blessed. 

Elaine Marie Cooper is the award-winning author of Fields of the Fatherless and Bethany’s Calendar. Her latest release (Saratoga Letters) was finalist in Historical Romance in both the Selah Awards and Next Generation Indie Book Awards. She penned the three-book Deer Run Saga and has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. She freely admits to being a history geek. Look for her upcoming series, entitled Dawn of America, set in Revolutionary War Connecticut. The first two books are entitled War's Respiteand Love's Kindling. You can visit her site at www.elainemariecooper.com