Day 2 - Epiphany

Another thing that we sometimes don’t understand is the Epiphany.

We may see it on a calendar and think, “ok, what is that?” Or we think, “Doesn’t epiphany mean a sudden realization of truth?”

On January 6, many churches celebrate the Epiphany, which is the traditional day on which the Magi visited the baby Jesus. Here’s part of the Wikipedia article about it:

“The observance had its origins in the Eastern Christian Churches and was a general celebration of the manifestation of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. It included the commemoration of his birth; the visit of the Magi (‘Wise Men’, as Magi were Persian priests) to Bethlehem; all of Jesus's childhood events, up to and including his baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist; and even the miracle at the Wedding of Cana in Galilee. It seems fairly clear that the Baptism was the primary event being commemorated.

“Christians fixed the date of the feast on January 6 quite early in their history. Ancient liturgies noted Illuminatio, Manifestatio, Declaratio (Illumination, Manifestation, Declaration); cf. Matthew 3:13–17; Luke 3:22; and John 2:1–11; where the Baptism and the Marriage at Cana were dwelt upon. Western Christians have traditionally emphasized the ‘Revelation to the Gentiles’ mentioned in Luke, where the term Gentile means all non-Jewish peoples. The Biblical Magi, who represented the non-Jewish peoples of the world, paid homage to the infant Jesus in stark contrast to Herod the Great (King of Judea), who sought to kill him. In this event, Christian writers also inferred a revelation to the Children of Israel. Saint John Chrysostom identified the significance of the meeting between the Magi and Herod's court: ‘The star had been hidden from them so that, on finding themselves without their guide, they would have no alternative but to consult the Jews. In this way the birth of Jesus would be made known to all.’.”

Day 1 - The Twelve Days of Christmas

The first thing that we sometimes get wrong at Christmas is the concept of the 12 Days of Christmas.

When I was younger, I seem to recall people using the concept of the 12 days of Christmas as a countdown to Christmas. This seemed to progress to the 25 days of Christmas, as a countdown to Christmas day.

The 12 days of Christmas actually refer to Christmas Day and the 11 days after Christmas, leading up to the Epiphany (January 6). Here’s part of the Wikipedia article about it:

“The Twelve Days of Christmas are the festive days beginning Christmas Day (25 December). This period is also known as Christmastide and Twelvetide. The Twelfth Night of Christmas is always on the evening of 5 January, but the Twelfth Day can either precede or follow the Twelfth Night according to which Christian tradition is followed. Twelfth Night is followed by the Feast of the Epiphany on 6 January. In some traditions, the first day of Epiphany (6 January) and the twelfth day of Christmas overlap.”