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Celebrated at the 21st or 22nd of December this marks the Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemipshere while Litha is celebrated as the Summer Solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. It is of course close to Christmas Day while that is also the feast day of Frau Holle, a Scandinavian spirit who is honored as the embodiment of nature and the woods.

~Magickal Graphics~

Yule for many modern pagans is about the recognition of the return of the light, of new beginnings, a time of reflection on the past and a time to celebrate another year over and the hope of spring to come.

Holly, ivy, mistletoe and evergreens are in plentiful supply for Christmas and make great decorations, as do star and gingerbread themed ornaments. I love combining as many facets of Yule and Christmas as possible. Red, green, gold and white are great colours to use at this time of year.

Some people like to try divination at this time, although it isn't as powerful a time as Samhain; some like to wait until the New Year. It's a good time to think about the things you're thankful for and the things you want in your life over the next year.
It's one of, if not my favourite, festivals. The return of the light before we seem doomed to perish from cold and hunger! This is my spiritual celebration and Christmas is my secular celebration with the wider family.

The Fire Bucket

I don't usually keep the Yule log, the last piece of wood from the previous year's fire, but if you do, this is a time to burn it. Some mulled wine and home made cookies in front of the outdoor fire pit, fire bucket, chimenea or whatever else you can find is a great way to celebrate Yule. The best cookie and a small portion of the wine as libation are a suitable offering to the gods and the libation is a form of wassailing – if you have fruit trees pour it near them. The wassailing tradition honours the apple trees with singing and cider from their fruit in the hope of a good harvest next year.

While the fire burns, you might want to burn a copy of the list of thanks and goals you've written down. Some cultures believe this is the way to send a message to the gods or even to send a letter to Santa.

The Oak King and the Holly King

In many Celtic-based traditions of neopaganism, there is the enduring legend of the battle between the Oak King and the Holly King. These two mighty rulers fight for supremacy as the Wheel of the Year turns each season. At the Winter Solstice, or Yule, the Oak King kills the Holly King, and then reigns until Midsummer, or Litha. Once the Summer Solstice arrives, the Holly King returns to do battle with the old king, and defeats him. The Holly King them rules until Yule.

In some Wiccan traditions, the Oak King and the Holly King are seen as dual aspects of the Horned God…Often, these two entities are portrayed in familiar ways - the Holly King frequently appears as a woodsy version of Santa Claus.

Source

Last year I wrote about the Pagan secrets of the festive season. This year I'm quoting from an article on how Religions intertwine during the winter solstice

It's no coincidence that decking the halls, lighting candles and feasting with friends and family are all hallmarks of the season - be it in celebration of Christmas, Hanukkah or Diwali.
It's also no coincidence that they all happen around the time of the winter solstice.
Many of the traditions in today's organized religions have roots that extend back to the days of pagan rituals.
Putting up a Christmas tree, for example, comes from early Germanic pagans who used the evergreen as a symbol of something that would last through the winter and bring hope for the spring.
The Druids, a pagan subsect, were agricultural folk, and used the winter solstice to honour the land.
"Because it's cold and the days are getting darker, we haven't been able to spend that much time outside," said Suzi Stretton, manager at Serendipity's Backyard in Steveston.
"So instead, we bring the greenery into our homes. It's another way to become closer to nature and honour it," added Stretton, a self-identified pagan.
In pre-Christian times, pagans believed greenery would encourage growth in the spring.
…
"It's interesting that Christianity celebrates the rebirth of the son, while winter solstice celebrates the rebirth of the sun," said Stretton. "But in both cases, light means hope."
Similarly, the play of light and darkness features in Judaism and Hinduism as well around this time of year. The lighting of the menorah during Hanukkah symbolizes overcoming politically darker days of oppression, while Diwali (the festival of lights) signifies the victory of light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance.
Across the board, the celebrations encourage perseverance through the darkest days of the year.
"The dead of winter was a tough time back then," said Stretton. "It was the time when people lived or died, they had to be careful. If you got sick during this time, there was a good chance you wouldn't survive. Managing the food supply was important."
…
Where witchcraft focuses on the magical aspect, Wicca, like other pagan subcultures, celebrates nature and humans' connection with their surrounding environment.
"It's about learning to live with the seasons and understanding how we feel during specific times," said Stretton.
On Stretton's mantle at home, sits a broom, cauldron and candles. Each item symbolizes something from the Wiccan culture. The broom represents clearing space and clutter - an antithesis to the mode of transportation for the evil witch - while the cauldron is for fire, which purifies and rids the space of bad energy. The greenery and holly honour nature.
While few would call themselves pagan, many on the west coast do call themselves spiritual, but not religious. And that spirituality is rooted in their relationship with nature.
The quest for meaning, a connection with nature and the celebration of food, friends and family appear to be rooted in all forms of faith.