Celebrating Chinese New Year in Brazil
The missionary experience involves a sharing of cultures
By Sr. Lucia Lee, O.L.M.
Summer 2005
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A visit with Raimunda (right) and Aparicida, women from the interior who have come to the city for cancer treatment at Casa Vida (House of Life). Pici, Brazil
I think that one of my ministries here in Brazil is to share my Chinese culture and customs with Brazilians. Each year I invite one of the groups of people that I am associated with to share the Chinese New Year celebration at our house. Once it was the staff from the cancer hospital. Another time I invited a group of children with whom I teach crafts. This year, I invited my friends from the AIDS Centre.
Celebrating Chinese New Year means a lot of fun and plenty of food. We have special foods like chicken to represent the phoenix, the mystical bird that symbolizes a fresh start; fish, which represents our wish for smooth sailing through difficulties; and noodles, which represent long life.
After the main course, which also includes rice, vegetables and sweet meats, we enjoy the ritual of breaking open the fortune cookies. Each person reads the prediction with all the seriousness of an Oriental sage. A lively discussion of the appropriateness of the fortune for that person follows. Then comes the reading of the Chinese zodiac, which consists of a 12-year-cycle. Every year in the cycle is assigned an animal name or "sign": Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Boar. And every 12 years the same animal name or "sign" reappears. One legend tells us that the Lord Buddha summoned all the animals of creation to come to him before he departed from Earth. Only 12 showed up. So he honoured each animal that responded to his invitation with a year of its own.
Sr. Lucy Lee translates the writings on the wall hangings, which carry wishes for Chinese New Year blessings of peace and happiness for all the years to come.
The characteristics of the animal for the year in which a person was born are applied to that person. These could be personality traits, physical and mental attributes, and to some degree, success or failure throughout his/her lifetime. As expected, another discussion follows with plenty of laughter.
Most Brazilians in our area have little or no experience of Oriental customs. Those who have been part of our celebrations of Chinese New Year enjoyed themselves while learning of another custom and contributing to the festivities. They say that Brazil is the land of eternal fiestas. This suits me just fine.
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