LAKE JAMES
NORTH CAROLINA
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LAKE JAMES NORTH CAROLINA
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Christmas I + Dec. 30, 2007 + St. Paul’s, Lake James
+ In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. One of the great gems of the Peanuts Cartoon Strip is the episode when Charlie Brown is sitting quietly, looking at television, when his little sister walks in and, with great pride, announces “I’ve decided something! I’ve decided to become a nurse when I grow up!” Hardly looking up from his television show, Charlie Brown asks “How did you happen to decide that?” only to be answered by “Because I like white shoes!” Somehow, liking white shoes is apt to seem to most of us as a somewhat inadequate reason for becoming a nurse (at least, I hope so). But I wonder whether we might not get similarly odd responses if we went around asking people we met on the street what they liked most about Christmas. My hunch is that there would be many mentions of gift receiving and giving, family gatherings, parties, Santa Claus (if the person asked was young enough, maybe even light dustings of snow. I remember a house in Western Massachusetts, beautifully and tastefully decorated with lights and exterior Christmas ornaments, all of a very traditional type, except that, in addition, someone had painted a large sign which read “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JESUS!” Yes, it is His birthday, but also so much more! I suspect most of us are aware that the Church keeps Christmas not just for one day, but for twelve days, and right now, that can leave us feeling somewhat out of step with many of our neighbors around us, especially those who have already discarded their Christmas trees and for whom “all that is over for another year.” Many of us are familiar with the delightful Christmas carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and may think of it as a children’s song or perhaps a romantic song for lovers. But did you know that scholars tell us it was written in the 16th century in England as a teaching device for Anglicans and Catholics in the face of Puritan oppression? It was a way of teaching the Faith without outsiders realizing what was being taught! For example, “On the first day of Christmas, my true love (God the Father) gave to me a partridge in a pear tree” refers to Jesus, the Christ, symbolically referred to as a mother partridge recalling the phrase in St. Luke’s Gospel “Jerusalem! Jerusalem! How often would I have sheltered you under my wings as a hen does for her chicks…” On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me two turtle doves, meaning the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me three French hens, standing for the three theological virtues (1) Faith (2) Hope (3) Love. On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me four calling birds, signifying the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me five gold rings, which were the first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures, known as the Torah or Pentateuch. On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me six geese a-laying, meaning just as the “geese” were giving birth, so God was creating the world in the six days of creation. On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me seven swans a-swimming, symbolizing the seven-fold gifts of the Holy Spirit: prophecy, ministry, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading, and compassion. On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me eight maids a-milking, referring to the eight Beatitudes (“Blessed are the poor in spirit…etc.). On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me nine ladies dancing, a code referring to what the theologians call the nine-fold fruit of the Holy Spirit, namely love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ten Lords a-leaping, meaning the Ten Commandments. On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me eleven pipers piping. These were the eleven faithful Apostles whose piping (teaching) spread the Christian faith. And on the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me twelve drummers drumming, standing for the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles’ Creed. Just as there is a lot more to the meaning of that delightful song, there is so much more to Christmas than parties, trees, and presents. The cute, cuddly baby in the manger at Bethlehem is also the Savior twisting in agony on the Cross and the Son of God who, with the Father and the Holy Spirit is what all this is about. The cuddly baby isn’t much help when someone is dying painfully of cancer, or much strength for someone trying to conquer a powerful addiction, or to one trying to cope with the destruction of a marriage, but we don’t worship a little baby who remains just that – we worship the living Christ whose grace strengthens us. It is no accident that, in the twelve days which follow Christmas day, four great holy days are commemorated, three of which refer to martyrs: St. Stephen, the Holy Innocents, and St. Thomas Becket. That, too, is part of the Christian Faith, the Christian reality. So, we celebrate these twelve days of Christmas, twelve meaningful and great days, which even beats liking white shoes! + In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
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This page last modified on Friday, April 11, 2008 09:40 PM |
