Sunday, January 7, 2018
Send-Off for the Christmas Season
This year the Baptism of the Lord and the Epiphany fell on the same weekend; the Baptism yesterday and the Epiphany today. We gave the Christmas season a good send off this morning. We sang every Christmas carol that had any mention of the Magi; and one that didn't. Lo, How a Rose E're Blooming is one of my favorites,
and I talked my fellow choir members into including it. We didn't do as
well as Charlotte Church, but we gave it our best shot.
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One of my favorites, too, Katherine. Check out this performance of "Es ist ein Ros entsprungen":
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/BsqM8UWNiNo
Well when it comes to music and decorations I have no intention of sending off the Christmas season anytime soon.
ReplyDeleteI plan to celebrate it clear though at least Julian Calendar Theophany (Baptism of Christ) on 19th of January, maybe even to its octave (leave taking) day January 26th
And of course I will continue to keep Christmas music and directions not only through Candlemas (February 2nd) but also Julian Calendar celebration of the Meeting of the Lord on February 15th.
What you say? Lent begins on Valentine Day February 14th. Too bad, I am beginning Lent this year with Julian Calendar. It begins with Forgiveness Vespers on February 18th, our First Sunday of Lent.
I plan to take my Christmas decorations down on Saturday, February 17th.
Nice thing about my knowledge of the Byzantine tradition it gives my a lot of options. I can even sing alleluia during Lent!
However one thing I plan to send off is the lake effect snow and frigid temperatures. We break freezing Monday and into the forties by Wednesday and Thursday. I hope it melts all the snow.
I'm keeping my decorations up until I feel like taking them down. I don't yet. It's probably just as well that the Christmas cookies are gone, most of them having been sent home with the kids and grandkids.
DeleteThe Tree Meister certainly plans to keep the tree through Valentine's Day.
ReplyDeleteFor those who like additional options.
ReplyDeleteThe custom of some Palestinian monasteries was to begin the 40 day fast on the octave day of Epiphany/Theophany, i.e. after the Baptism of Christ. The monks went out into the desert and did not return until Palm Sunday. That's a long lent and a long forty days.
So maybe if you want to consider a lot of prayer, and fasting this year for yourself or others, that might be the way to go.
For myself I prefer celebrating the Incarnation while the rest of the world pays attention to our national circus. But beginning Lent early might be another option. Except of course I have given up watching TV a long time ago.
Decorations get 12 days, Christmas Eve through Epiphany by Anglican reckoning. We had a big dinner yesterday and pigged out on our remaining cookies. Tree and decor is back in the attic today, and remaining cookies go to work tomorrow with Raber.
ReplyDeleteI leave the creche with wisemen up until Ash Wednesday.
Beyond 12 days, the cats become emboldened to start pulling things off the lower branches to knock around the house, and under the tree becomes prime real estate to fight over.
We've has some mornings in the 50s, which extended the run of The First Noel at daily Mass ("On a cold winter's night that was so deep." Warming up tomorrow, so we'll see where we go from there. Didn't hear Lo, How a Rose inside or outside church this season, and -- more unusual -- didn't hear What Child Is This until today. Does anyone besides me think We, Three Kings misses the point completely?
ReplyDeleteTom, how do you feel that We Three Kings misses the point? It's not my favorite song, and I'm not too sorry it only gets used once a year. But it is at least somewhat Scriptural. I confess that the alternate grade school version, "We three king of orient are, smoking on a rubber cigar..." pops into my head sometimes.
DeleteThanks for sharing this was beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the more complex knots on the liturgical calendar, but let me make an attempt here.
ReplyDeleteOn the universal Roman calendar Epiphany is January 6th (the 12th day of Christmas). Of course, from year to year, January 6th can fall on any given day of the week - this year, it happened to fall on a Saturday. But in the US, Epiphany is transferred to the nearest Sunday that falls between January 2nd and January 8th.*
In years where Epiphany is transferred to a Sunday that falls between Jan 2 and Jan 6, the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated the following Sunday.
In years (like this one) where Epiphany is transferred to a Sunday that falls on Jan 7th or Jan 8th, the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated on the Monday immediately after the Sunday of Epiphany.
All of which is to say: Baptism of the Lord is tomorrow (Monday) this year. Christmas season ends after Evening Prayer II on Monday. So if you're stressed because you think Christmas season ended today and you still don't have your Christmas cards sent out, you have a one-day reprieve.
Now please don't ask me about phases of the moon and when we celebrate Easter. In fact, come to think of it, I thought Francis announced a few years ago that the Roman calendar for Easter was going to get aligned with how the Orthodox calculate it. What's going on with that - haven't heard anything about it since then.
* In countries where Epiphany *isn't* transferred to the nearest Sunday, it falls on a weekday in most years, and is a holy day of obligation and follows those rules for mass attendance. In those weekday years, there is a 2nd Sunday of Christmas Season on the liturgical calendar for the Sunday that falls during the first week of January after New Years Day. If I'm not mistaken, the Gospel reading for that day commemorates the circumcision of our Lord, which is an ancient feast in the church. (Katherine, I think you were venting recently about the "wombiness" of the season? Please note that there once was a feast that celebrated a male organ as well, albeit one that gets snipped off.) But since, in the US, Epiphany always is transferred to that early Sunday in January, Epiphany always supersedes the 2nd Sunday of Christmas and so we never celebrate the latter here. Those dioceses, like mine, that transfer the Ascension from Thursday to the following Sunday have a similar thing - Ascension on Sunday always supersedes the 7th Sunday of Easter, so we never get those readings and texts.
Jim, I didn't hear anything about our Easter getting aligned with the Orthodox one. My guess is it got dropped. It would probably make some people pitch an embolism.
DeleteI was thinking Saturday was the Baptism of our Lord because the daily Mass Gospel reading for Sat. morning was Mark 1:7-11. But I see that Monday is the day actually designated.
Yes, LOL, there actually is a reading about male parts in this season!
Moot point since Epiphany is gonna be a fixed feast day for us, old habits, and all that. But why was it deemed necessary/desirable to transfer Epiphany to the nearest Sunday? Why not do this with all days of obligation? Just curious.
DeleteJean, I assume it was transferred to Sunday to relieve the burden of another day of obligation. But whenever we do that, we do override another holy day (a Sunday of the year) on the liturgical calendar. So they're trying to strike a balance.
DeleteMy personal preference would be to simply eliminate the obligations. I don't know if the church is ready for that, though.
While the Epiphany was (and is) a day of obligation for the universal church, it was not in the US even before Vatican II if my memory is correct.
DeleteThe idea of moving a feast to Sunday is a matter of making it more convenient to observe whether or not it is "of obligation"
Many parishes now observe their patronal feast on a Sunday using the readings from the Sunday but the prayers from the feast.
Our local Orthodox Church has begun to observe the Feast of St. Nicholas, their patron, on a Sunday
My preference would be for us to change our understanding of what "days of obligation" mean. The one we grew up with is, "It's a mortal sin to miss Mass on those days, and you're in danger of going to hell if you die without repenting." That seems like quite the nuclear option and most people, especially the younger generation, don't buy it. I would like to see us get to more of an understanding that these days are an opportunity to join with the whole Church in celebration, and why would we want to miss them? Do we consider it an "obligation" to celebrate the birthdays or anniversaries of loved ones, or is it an action that flows from our love of them? We are supposed to love God, and love for Mary and his saints flow from that. Going to Mass is a way to celebrate that love.
DeleteWasn't Charlotte Church a tween prodigy? I just looked at Wikipedia and she's like 31 years old now. How can that be?
ReplyDeleteYeah, she was a tween prodigy. Then she got a little older and had to act out a little bit to prove she was her own person and not angelic. Kind of SOP for teen stars. Sounds like now she is back on track.
Delete