Caitlin Hu describes the horrors of some European December Festivals.

Until Jan. 6, demons, witches and monsters haunt Europe.

The season of terror actually begins on Dec. 5, the eve of Saint Nicholas’ Day, with public parades of the saint’s supposed companions: Across the Italian, Austrian and Slovenian Alps, cowbell-slung demons calledKrampus storm mountain towns. In France, the legendary serial killer and butcher Pere Fouettard (Father Whipper) threatens naughty children with his whip, while in Belgium and the Netherlands, a controversial child-kidnapper called Zwarte Piet (Black Piet) rides through canals on a steamship.

Where did this come from? Christmastime in the old days meant drunkenness and demands for charity as well as these remnants of Saturnalia, which is not the forefather of Christmas but a competitor. This public carousing would have been one of the reasons Puritans, if not Christians at large, did not observe Christmas in their day. One Puritan wrote,

Especially in Christmas time, there is nothing else used but cards, dice, tables, masking, mumming, bowling, & such like fooleries. And the reason is, they think they have a commission and prerogative that time to do what they lust, and to follow what vanity they will. But (alas!) do they think that they are privileged at that time to do evil?

But why do monsters roam European streets in December? Perhaps the pagans recognize we will only be good (to the degree that we can) if someone is threatening to whip us or enslave us every minute of our lives.