While the malls and stores are blowing out and putting away their Christmas items and people are taking down their decorations, we Catholic Christians have just begun our celebration of Christmas. For us, Advent ended at sunset on Christmas Eve, when many parishes celebrated the Vigil of the Nativity. The season officially began with the celebration of the Nativity, Jesus' birth, and includes the feasts of the Holy Family (the Sunday immediately following Christmas), Epiphany, and the Baptism of the Lord. This year, the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated on January 10, 2010.
Through the week following the Nativity of Jesus, the Church recognizes the Octave of Christmas, an eight day remembrance and reflection on the Incarnation. Each day during the Octave of Christmas, the Lectionary, the Scripture passages read during daily Masses, focus on the Incarnation, God-becoming-human.
The song "The Twelve Days of Chrismas" actually celebrates the twelve days between the Nativity of the Lord and the feast of the Epiphany.
Download The_12_Days_of_Christmas.pdf (63.7K)
So continue to enjoy your celebration of Christmas!
