Deacon Joanne
Here we are, it is December 26th and in our secular world Christmas is over. People have dismantled their trees and the live trees, now barren of ornaments and lights, lie out by the curb waiting for the tree chipper to roll down the street. Gifts have been opened, boxes have been flattened and lights have been unplugged. Stores have removed Christmas merchandise from their shelves and have either boxed it up to sell next year or relegated it to an end cap with a big 50% off sign above it.
But Christmas is not over; it has just begun!
I recently read an article by Tai French on the Anglican Compass web side. The following summarizes what I read. Did you know that the song “12 days of Christmas” actually starts with Christmas Day (Dec. 25) being the first day, December 26 is the second day. And so on, until the twelfth day of Christmas on January 5, followed by the feast of the Epiphany on January 6!
As early as 567 A., the church began formally setting aside the twelve days from Christmas to Epiphany as both a sacred and festive season with Advent being a special time of fasting in preparation of the feast.
The observation of a prolonged festive Christmas celebration continued throughout the middle ages and the early modern era. However, at least in America, it has all but faded away in a blur of post-Christmas shopping, gift returning, and diet and/or exercise resolution planning.
In the book A Thrill of Hope: Celebrating Advent at Home, Ashley Wallace writes “In the world in which we live, we are given no time to prepare for the birth of Our Lord and Saviour and then no time to celebrate it once we get there.” So, having prepared, let’s rejoice! Let’s take time to enjoy the season.
Let’s take time to enjoy the season after all of the holiday-related busyness. Let’s throw open the doors of hospitality to welcome in Our Saviour but also the stranger. Let’s sing out our joy and keep Christmas in our hearts not just until Epiphany but all year long.
Prayer:
Lord God, let me never forget all that you do for me on a daily basis. Sustain me with the hope of my salvation and the other countless blessings you provide with your continuous presence in my life. Lead me to live my life in testimony to your incredible blessings, that your love may be known and experienced by all those I serve, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
—Author Unknown
