December 2019: Religious Freedom

Join fellow Missourians in celebrating our cultural and religious freedoms during the month of December. 

Western Missouri

• The Coterie presents A Charlie Brown Christmas. Join Charlie Brown on a memorable journey as he tries to direct the school Christmas pageant. In letters to Santa, everyone seems to be acting materialistic, so Charlie Brown tries to restore holiday spirit with a ragged little fir tree. Experience the power of this wonderful story live onstage as Charlie Brown turns to his best friend, Linus, to learn the season’s real meaning. This special event takes place throughout the month of December. Please visit online for scheduling and ticket information.

• On December 17 at the Kansas City Convention Center, event production company Mammoth presents A Magical Cirque Christmas. The producers of Broadway’s smash hit The Illusionists have brought together the world’s greatest entertainers for a spell-binding and incredible new holiday production. Experience the magic of Christmas with dazzling performers and breathtaking cirque artists from all corners of the world, accompanied by your favorite holiday music performed live. Get into the spirit of the season with this merry treat that is perfect for the entire family. Please visit online to reserve your tickets today.

• The American Jazz Museum, in partnership with the National Black United Front KC, present the 37th Annual City-Wide Kwanzaa Celebration. Celebrate Kwanzaa in the Gem Theater from December 26 through December 31. Each night begins with an African market featuring local vendors at 6 p.m., with programming beginning at 7 p.m. Each night features a different program or performance hosted by a local organization. For more information regarding this free event, please visit online.

Central Missouri

• The City of Jefferson hosts this year's 80th Annual Jaycees Christmas Parade. See dozens of floats decorated with holiday themes and hear local bands playing Christmas carols while collecting candy and waving on the parade! The parade runs through the heart of downtown on High Street and back down Capitol Avenue. This parade takes place on December 7 at 4:30 p.m. and is free to all individuals.

• Experience Deutschheim Weihnachtfest, a 19th century German Christmas celebration at Deutschheim State Historic Site in Hermann on December 7, 8, 14, and 15 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. View the lamp-lit Pommer-Gentner House decked with greenery and festive Christmas trees adorned with authentic German ornaments. Enjoy traditional German Christmas cookies, including springerle, lebkuchen, and zimmerschied. For more information, call 573-486-2200 or visit online.

• On December 11, the University of Missouri Concert Series features Great Russian Nutcracker. This holiday season give your family the gift of Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker. Step into a simpler time filled with sweet dreams and Christmas magic. Enjoy world-class artists, over 200 dazzling costumes, stunning sets, towering puppets, and soaring birds. Celebrate this cherished Columbia holiday tradition and relive the dream with Tchaikovsky’s timeless score. For additional information or to reserve tickets, please visit online.

• The Downtown District of Columbia presents Living Windows Festival 2019. On December 6 beginning at 6 p.m., the Downtown District of Columbia is full of holiday spirit, offering live performances, open houses, shopping, snowflakes on Broadway, the Magic Tree, and visits with Santa. For additional information regarding this free event, please visit online.

Eastern Missouri

• The City of St. Louis, in partnership with the Missouri Botanical Garden, present Kwanzaa: Festival of First Fruits. Kwanzaa is a Swahili term meaning “first fruits,” and this contemporary African-American holiday centers around the feast table of the harvest. A Kwanzaa ceremony highlights a day of storytelling, craft and jewelry displays, and authentic African drumming and musical performances. This special event takes place on December 30 at the Ridgway Visitor Center. For more information, please visit online.

• The BFL Kwanzaa Holiday Expo 2019 is a 35-year old regionally known event that draws families and shoppers from the entire St. Louis metropolitan area for food, fun, education, and entertainment. One of the nation’s largest and longest running Kwanzaa celebrations, this special event focuses ujamaa, the fourth principle of Kwanzaa referring to cooperative economics. Programming includes a variety of vendors selling artisan and crafted goods, the Kwanzaa House offering teachings about Kwanzaa, the Kwanzaa children’s village, guest speakers, films, a health seminar, and delicious food. Please join us at the Better Family Life Cultural Educational & Business Center on December 14 and 15 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Garden Glow, a holiday light extravaganza at the Missouri Botanical Garden, runs nightly throughout the month of December. Celebrate the holiday season with over one million dazzling lights, fun new experiences, and a spectacle of unique installations amid some of the Garden’s most iconic locations.  Explore the website or call 314-577-5100 for further detail.

• Cathedral Concerts presents Christmas at the Cathedral. On December 7 and 8, experience the joy of the music of Christmas with the St. Louis Archdiocesan Choirs and Orchestra. This year, programming includes a variety of Christmas classics, as well as the Christmas portion of The Messiah. For more information or to reserve tickets, please visit online or call 314-533-7662.

Statewide

• The U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Religious Freedom provides information about its mission of promoting religious freedom as a core objective of U.S. foreign policy. Learn how it monitors religious persecution and discrimination worldwide, recommends and implements policies in respective regions or countries, and develops programs to promote religious freedom internationally.

• View statistics on religion in the Statistical Abstract of the United States or explore religious groups in the U.S. by tradition, family, and denomination at the Pew Research Center.