What's Your "Groundhog Day"?

On this day in 1887, Groundhog Day, featuring a rodent meteorologist, is celebrated for the first time at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. According to tradition, if a groundhog comes out of its hole on this day and sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather; no shadow means an early spring.

Historical background of Groundhog Day includes:

• Rooted in the ancient Christian tradition of Candlemas Day, where clergy blessed and distributed candles for winter; the candles represented how long and could winter would be


• Germans expanded on the idea by selecting the hedgehog as a means of predicting weather


• German settlers to America in Pennsylvania continued the tradition, switching to the groundhogs as hedgehogs weren't available


• Groundhogs do emerge from hibernation in February, but only to look for a mate before going underground again


• They come out of hibernation for good in March


• In 1887 an enterprising newspaper editor declared that Phil, the Punxsutawaney groundhog, was America's only true weather-forecasting groundhog


• Phil and his descendants might be the most famous, but many towns across North America now have their own meteorology Marmota monax


• The 1993 movie "Groundhog Day" popularized the usage of "groundhog day" to mean something that is repeated over and over

Unfortunately, there are a lot of scary parallels in the church world:

• Do you have ongoing traditions from the past that had original meaning but have now lost that meaning?


• Have you adapted your traditions to fit the culture of your community?


• Are your traditions based on something that no longer is relevant?


• Do you market your traditions on their own merits, or are you exploiting them?


• Are your traditions the same as a half-dozen other churches in your town?


• Do your traditions have a life of their own, long-ago outliving their original useful purpose?

While you may view this post as "anti-tradition", neither it nor I am! I love history and tradition - I have minors in history at the graduate and post-graduate levels, study history all the time, and know that it can be a powerful teacher.

Our history should be a bridge to the future, not an anchor to the past.

Churches should be students of their past - but also their present, in order to help write their future. Can you as a church leader understand and appreciate the history of your church and its traditions? At the same time, are you a cultural anthropologist of your community, understanding what's going on today? Combining the two will give you and your leadership team a solid foundation for future opportunities!