http://www.ncfolk.org/moravian-cookies/ Today, 8 December, Christmas Countdown 18 is the feast of the Immaculate Conception - a Catholic Church celebration of the birth of the Virgin Mary, free from original sin. I must admit that I had not heard of Christmas cookies called Moravian Spritz, or Moravian Spice Cookies until today. They are prepared traditionally as part of the ritual of observing the Feast of the Immaculate Conception - a national holiday in many Latin countries and significant in the United States. The spice laden cookies are said to celebrate the purity of the Virgin Mary, since Mary, too, "gave forth sweet smell like cinnamon and aromatic balm and yielded a sweet odour like the best myrrh." In the spirit of Advent, abstinence is practised, for traditionally the cookies must stand for ten days in the refrigerator before baking, and are then shaped into Christmas figures, especially hearts and liturgical symbols....
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