Yule Log
History
The Yule Log Tradition was the first traditional event established at New Jersey College for Women when the College opened in 1918. Students, filled with the spirit of the holiday season, asked to burn a yule log in College Hall and illuminate a tree in front of the building. Johnson & Johnson provided colored light bulbs from their electric signs and the students washed windows in College Hall, earning $13.00 which they used to decorate. One evening while gathered on the winding staircase in College Hall, the students held candles and sang holiday songs. As they sang, a yule log was carried in and ceremoniously placed in the fireplace.
This beloved tradition has continued every year since 1918. When Elizabeth Rodman Voorhees donated the money to build our chapel in 1925, she stipulated that a hidden fireplace be included in the chancel so that the Yule Log tradition could always endure. Since 1927, the Yule Log continues to be celebrated in Voorhees Chapel.
Today, our Yule Log Ceremony retains the look and spirit of that first celebration. However, the songs and readings have changed to reflect the diversity of our community and global perspectives. Representing many cultures, religions and traditions, our selections of music and readings are connected by a common theme: light.
Program
Seasonal Music
“Deck the Halls”
Rutgers Voorhees Choir and Audience
Traditional Welsh tune
Toast for Yule Log
Evolution of Yule Log
Winter Festivals
“A Song of Life”
Rutgers Voorhees Choir
Marques Garrett
From the Rig Veda
Excerpts from poem by Kamala Das
The Story of Chanukah
Elizabeth Dreifus
From the Qur’an
Excerpts from poem by Mohja Kaft DC’88
Tamshi La Tutaonana
Excerpts from poem by Lucille Clifton
(The Farewell Statement for Kwanzaa)
“Kuumba”
Rutgers Voorhees Choir
Zanaida Robles
From the Bible
Luke 2:8 – 14
“Coventry Carol”
Rutgers Voorhees Choir
B.E. Boykin
From a Creek Nation Poet
Excerpts from “Secrets from the Center of the World” by Joy Harjo
Benediction
“Ábreme la Puerta”
Rutgers Voorhees Choir
Traditional from Puerto Rico, Arranged by Cristian Grases
Benediction
The flames of the Yule Log may die, but our spirit will not. Together, we have shared an old and beautiful custom. As we leave the warmth of the fire behind us, may the bonds of friendship be our strength, may knowledge be our achievement and may love of others be our ideal. The days ahead are ours to mold. Let us seek, as all ages have, the light to bring us to the timeless goal of all—peace.
A Poem for Yule Log
Together
kindling the yule log fire
in a hidden fireplace.
A tradition.
Together in chapel
a sense of community
shadowing yellow warmth,
too often hidden
(like the fireplace),
is whispered to us
by the crackling yule log,
while we grow hushed with the night together.
Our voices burst into song
releasing the joy that was in us all along and sear the silence;
on a staircase to somewhere.
Seniors in white hold candlelight and brighten the darkness,
dispelling shadows.
Eyes now drawn to the log lit
by fingers of flame,
in the fireplace too often hidden
(too often hidden).
Together, in shadows
and candlelight
we glow with a warmth
that we may start this winter
together.
Traditional Events Committee
- Dhruvita Patel '25
- Sriya Vemuri '25
- Janet Cazares ‘24
- Padmaja Gopalam ‘25
- Rhea Sharma ‘26
- Oluwanifemi Kayode-Alese ‘26
- Divya Ananth ‘26
Special Thank You
- Douglass Residential College Staff and Friends
- Stephanie Tubiolo, Voorhees Choir Conductor
- Justine Langman, Voorhees Choir Accompanist
- Soloists
- Voorhees Choir
- Rutgers University Facilities
- The Traditional Events Committee
- Nicoletta M. Graff and the Floriculture Greenhouses at Rutgers University
Thank you to the donors to Douglass Residential College and the Douglass Fund for the contributions that have made this event possible. Thank you especially to the Elizabeth R. Voorhees Endowment, a legacy gift that has funded Yule Log celebrations for generations.
For more information on how you can make a difference for Douglass students, please contact
drcadvancement@echo.rutgers.edu or 848-932-2578.
Douglass Residential College, at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, builds on the distinct mission of the New Jersey College for Women (NJC) founded in 1918.