Christmas Cheer: How Long Should The Festive Season Last?

Christmas is celebrated by Christians on December 25 as the anniversary of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. However, the length of the Christmas celebration varies across different cultures and religious traditions. In Western Christianity, the Twelve Days of Christmas, also known as Christmastide, are celebrated from December 25 to January 5 (Twelfth Night), with January 6 being Epiphany, or the Feast of the Epiphany, which marks the end of the Christmas season. In Eastern Christianity, the Twelve Days of Christmas are celebrated from December 25 to January 18, with January 19 being Epiphany. For Catholics, the Christmas season ends on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which falls on the Sunday after Epiphany. In the Armenian Apostolic Church, Christmas is celebrated on January 6, which is also Epiphany. In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Christmas is celebrated on January 7.

The 12 Days of Christmas

The earliest known version of the song first appeared in a 1780 children's book called "Mirth Without Mischief", with the lyrics having changed over the years. While the song's exact origins and meaning are unclear, it is believed to have been designed as a "memory-and-forfeits" game, where participants who made a mistake in reciting the lyrics had to pay a penalty.

The 12 days in the song are the 12 days starting with Christmas Day and ending on the day before the Epiphany (6 January). The gifts mentioned in the song are:

• Partridge in a pear tree
• Two turtle doves
• Three French hens
• Four calling birds
• Five gold rings
• Six geese a-laying
• Seven swans a-swimming
• Eight maids a-milking
• Nine ladies dancing
• Ten lords a-leaping
• Eleven pipers piping
• Twelve drummers drumming

The Christmas Season for Catholics

The Christmas season is one of the most important times in the Church year for Catholics, second only to Easter. It is a time to celebrate the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ and the mystery of the incarnation, the feast of God becoming flesh.

However, the Christmas octave, or eight-day celebration of the Lord's Nativity, extends the Christmas season to eight days, beginning on the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord (December 25) and concluding on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (January 1). During the octave, the clergy wear white, except during St. Stephen's Day and the Feast of the Holy Innocents, when they wear red.

The Christmas season can also be said to last 12 days, from December 26 (the day after Christmas) to the Feast of the Epiphany, which marks when the Magi encountered Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and gave Jesus the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, the Epiphany celebrates the revelation that Jesus was the Son of God, focusing on this revelation to the Three Wise Men, his baptism in the Jordan River, and the wedding at Cana.

In conclusion, while the Christmas season officially ends with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, some Catholics choose to extend their celebrations until Candlemas, or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, on February 2. On this day, Catholics bring candles to church to be blessed and then light them at home during prayer or difficult times as a symbol of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World.

Candlemas

The festival was formerly known in the Roman Catholic Church as the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary and is now known as the Presentation of the Lord. In the Anglican church, it is called the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, while in the Greek church it is called Hypapante (Meeting), referring to Jesus' meeting with Simeon and the prophet Anna in the Temple.

The earliest reference to the festival is from Jerusalem in the late 4th century, when the Western pilgrim Etheria attended its celebration on 14 February. It soon spread to other Eastern cities, and in 542, Justinian I decreed that its date should be moved to 2 February. By the middle of the 5th century, the custom of observing the festival with lighted candles had been introduced. In the Western church, Pope Sergius I (687-701) instituted the festival in Rome.

Advent

The season of Advent in the Christian calendar anticipates the 'coming of Christ' from three different perspectives: the physical nativity in Bethlehem, the reception of Christ in the heart of the believer, and the eschatological Second Coming.

During Advent, many people set up Christmas decorations, such as Christmas trees, wreaths, and Advent calendars.

Christmas in the Middle Ages

The local church was a focal point for Christmas celebrations, with well-attended services across all classes. Over time, these services became more elaborate, with the addition of extra dialogues and songs, known as 'troping'. This led to the development of nativity plays, with the Magi and King Herod as prominent figures. Another popular play during this period was "The Prophets", in which a priest conducted a dialogue with prophets like Jeremiah, Daniel, and Moses, while choir boys played bit-parts.

Homes were decorated with holly, ivy, bay leaves, and mistletoe, and a Yule log burned in the hearth. People exchanged gifts, enjoyed colourful church services, and indulged in feasts with an abundance of food and drink. The Christmas meal for the aristocracy was a grand affair, held in the Great Hall of a castle or manor, with festive garlands, holly, and ivy. The menu included soups, vegetable stews, roasted meats, fish, seafood, desserts, and spiced wine.

Christmas was also a time for charity and sharing food. For example, tenants at North Curry in Somerset received loaves of bread, beef, bacon, chicken soup, cheese, and an abundance of beer for the day.

The tradition of Christmas carols dates back to the 13th century, when they were songs accompanied by dancing, with one person singing while others danced in a circle. Carols often united Latin with vernacular languages, mixing the high and low, divine and human.

Medieval Christmas was also a time of role-reversal and social hierarchy inversion, such as the election of a boy bishop, who presided over processions and church rituals on the Feast of the Holy Innocents (28 December).

In conclusion, Christmas in the Middle Ages was a joyous and festive season, filled with religious services, feasting, gift-giving, and traditional decorations. It was a time for celebration, charity, and social gatherings, providing a break from the usual daily toil for people of all classes.

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