Roman Catholic Poland, Christmas Eve begins with a day of fasting and then a night of feasting. The traditional Christmas meal is known as Wigilia ('The Vigil'), and being invited to attend a dinner with a family is considered a high honour. On the night of Christmas Eve, the appearance of the first star in the sky is watched for, in remembrance of the Star of Bethlehem; it has been given the affectionate name of "the little star" or (the female counterpart of St. Nicholas). On that evening, children watch the sky anxiously hoping to be the first to cry out, "The star has come!" After the appearance of the first star is declared, the family sits down at the dinner table. According to tradition, bits of hay are spread beneath the tablecloth as a reminder that Christ was born in a manger. Others partake in the practice of placing money under the table cloth for each guest, in order to wish for prosperity in the coming year. The dinner contains twelve dishes, one for each Apostle. In many homes, an extra place setting is set. The empty setting is symbolically left at the table for a lonely wanderer who may be in need of food, an angel, the Baby Jesus or the Holy Spirit should appear to share the feast. Before eating, everyone exchanges Christmas greetings with each other. The supper begins with the breaking of the opłatek (Christmas wafer), in which everyone at the table breaks off a piece and eats it as a symbol of their unity with Christ. The is usually blessed by the presiding bishop, and stamped with a religious image such as the Nativity scene. A tradition exists among some families to serve twelve different dishes at symbolizing the Twelve Apostles, or perhaps, an odd number of dishes for good luck (usually five, seven, or nine). Some practice the superstition that an even number of people must be seated around the table. A traditional supper in Poland includes fried carp and barszcz (beetroot soup) with uszka (translated as 'little ears', also known as meatless ravioli). The most common dishes are fish soup, with potato salad, pierogi, gołąbki filled with kasza, pickled herring and fruit kompot. Carp provides a main component of the Christmas Eve meal across Poland: carp fillet, carp in aspic etc. Universal Polish Christmas foods are pierogi as well as some herring