Just as it was in the early days of our church, and still in modern day China, the practice of the faith went “underground.” Among the many things the believers tried to hold on to was the education of their children. Literacy was not then as it is now, and story-telling and song were the primary tools for teaching the faith. One of the many Christmas songs we sing to this day has its roots in the catechism of the children in Henry’s England.
Instead of an earthly suitor, the “true love” mentioned in the song is a reference to God. The “me” is symbolic of every baptized person. The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus Christ. The meaning of the other symbols are:
Two turtle doves... the Old and New Testaments;
Three French hens... Faith, Hope and Love;
Four calling birds... the four Gospels;
Five golden rings... the first five books of the Bible;
Six geese a-laying... the six days of creation;
Seven swans a-swimming... seven gifts of the Holy Spirit;
Eight maids a-milking... the eight Beatitudes;
Nine ladies dancing... nine fruits of the Holy Spirit;
Ten lords a-leaping... the Ten Commandments;
Eleven pipers piping... the eleven faithful disciples;
Twelve drummers drumming... the twelve points of belief in
the Apostles Creed.
The next time you hear the song, think of it in a new light. And when CNN reports how much more it costs to buy the “Twelve Days” at Neiman-Marcus this year as compared to last, just smile. For now you know the real truth of this song, and you know that it can’t be bought at any price, because it is free to anyone who believes.
Want to learn more about the Origin of the "Twelve Days"? Click the box below for a special old video...
Pagan Origins of Christmas
Historians are unsure exactly when Christians first began celebrating the Nativity of Christ. Some fringe scholars maintain that December 25th was only adopted in the 4th century as a Christian holiday by the Roman Emperor Constantine, to encourage a common religious festival for both Christians and Pagans.
The majority opinion is that Constantine did not have such authority. Perusal of historical records indicates that the first mention of such a feast in Constantinople (Constantine’s own city, after all) was not until 379 AD, under Gregory Nazienzen. In Rome, it can only be confirmed to mention in a document from approximately 350 AD, but without any mention of sanction by Emperor Constantine.
Early Christians celebrated more the subsequent Epiphany, when the baby Jesus was visited by the Magi (and this is still a primary time for celebration in Spain). Efforts to assign a date for his birth, though better known from writings from some centuries later, would have been important to all Christians then, no less than now.
The Romans honored Saturn, the ancient god of agriculture, each year beginning on December 17 in a festival called the Saturnalia. This festival lasted for seven days and included the winter solstice, which at that time fell on December 25th (today, following calendar reform, it falls on December 21st). During Saturnalia the Romans feasted, postponed all business and warfare, exchanged gifts, and temporarily freed their slaves. With the lengthening of daylight, these and other winter festivities continued through January 1st, the festival of Kalends, when Romans marked the day of the new moon and the first day of the month and religious year (the secular year began in March).
By the 4th century another factor was also at work. Many Romans also celebrated the solstice on December 25th with festivities in honor of the rebirth of Sol Invictus, the “Invincible Sun God,” or with rituals to glorify Mithra, the ancient Persian god of light. Sol Invictus was a religion to which both Constantine himself before his confession of Christianity, and his predecessor Diocletian, who had rebuilt the Roman Empire, were especially devoted, and to whom the latter had attributed his military successes (though Constantine saw Christ as having delivered him from the former Roman order’s designs: Diocletian at one time had had Constantine living under his eye, against his will, separating him from his father). Constantine is therefore assumed to have found it convenient to find a common major festival for both Sol Invictus and Christianity. There is no actual evidence beyond this chain of assumptions that the holiday was actually instituted by the Emperor. Indeed, all extant evidence indicates that it was generally adopted decades after his death in most parts of the Empire.
Nativity Scene
A nativity scene (usually capitalized if referring to the birth of Jesus), also called a crib or crèche (meaning “crib” or “manger” in French) generally refers to any depiction of the birth or birthplace of Jesus. In Spain and hispanic countries, this is called Belen (meaning Bethlehem in Spanish). In Argentina it is called pesebre.
Christian Nativity scenes, in two dimensions (drawings, paintings, icons, etc.) or three (sculpture or other three-dimensional crafts), usually show Jesus in a manger, Joseph and Mary in a barn (or cave) intended to accommodate farm animals. A mule and an ox accompany them, after the Apocryphal Gospels. The scene sometimes includes the Magi or Three Wise Men, shepherds, angels and the Star of Bethlehem. The traditional scenes that show the shepherds and Magi together are of course not true to the Bible story, since the Magi arrived much later (Luke 2:7-16).
At Christmas time these arrangements are created and displayed in Catholic (and some Protestant) homes, churches and parks. A life-sized version is on permanent display in Piazza San Pietro in the Vatican City.
Although St Francis of Assisi is credited with the invention of three-dimensional Nativity Scenes, drawings and paintings existed earlier. The tradition was brought into Spain from Naples during the reign of Charles III of Spain.
In Catalonia, an additional figure representing a Catalan peasant in the act of defecating (a caganer) is always included in the scene.
In Provence, in the South of France, nativity scenes are sometimes composed of hundreds of small painted clay figurines, called santons, representing all the traditional trades and professions of old Provence. Because of their cultural value the santons are often collected as art or craft objects, regardless of their possible use in a nativity scene.
The Christmas Star
The stars that appear in the sky today are the same ones that were there two thousand years ago.
A Nova?
Was there a nova at the time of Jesus’ birth? The exact time of His birth is not known, but astronomers cannot place a new star appearance anywhere near the possible time.
Shooting Star?
Could it have been a shooting star? Again, the astronomers say it was not likely. A meteor lasts only a few seconds or mintues at best. The wise men followed the star for weeks looking for Jesus. We can rule out comets as well. They can be seen by the naked eye for a week or months. But modern astronomers know which comets were close enough to earth hundreds and thousands of years ago and there was no comet visible to humans around the time of Christ’s birth.
The Pisces?
Some star gazers suggest that if we move the birth of Jesus to the springtime of 6 B.C., we can attribute the star to the time the planets Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn were close together in the heavens. They formed a triangle in the group of stars known as Pisces.
The wise men, themselves, were astrologers and studied the stars and planets and knew, according to Jewish rabbis, of the triangle and that it had appeared before the birth of Moses. Perhaps they interpreted it as a sign of a great event in the land of the Jewish people. This may have been the star of Bethlehem. Pisces became the special constellation of the Hebrew people.
Miraculous Star?
Still, many people prefer to believe that the strange star did appear, and that it was simply a miracle and throughout the world today, the Christian holiday has usually begun with the appearance of the first star of Christmas Eve.
In Poland, The Festival of the Star is held . Right after the Christmas Eve meal, the village priest, acts as the “Star Man” and tests the children’s knowledge of religion.
In Alaska, boys and girls carry a star shaped figure from house to house and sing carols in hopes of receiving treats.
In Hungary, a star-shaped pattern is carved in a half of an apple and is suppose to bring good luck.
In United States, a star often tops the Christmas Tree and is used for other Christmas decoration.
In general, the Christmas star symbolizes high hopes and high ideals - hope for good fortune, hope for reaching above oneself. For all human beings, regardless of religion, stars have special meaning for all share the heavens, no matter what barriers keep them apart on earth.
Click here to go to the Next Page
|
