Dear Faith Family,
yesterday officially began the "Twelve Days of Christmas." That's right, the twelve days start on Christmas, not lead up to it!
The process of connecting the feast of Christmas (December 25th) to the feast of Epiphany (January 6th) began in the fourth century and eventually, all the days between the two special days on the church calendar were "proclaimed sacred and festive." That means the celebration doesn't stop after the presents are opened!
While culturally, in the words of Gabe Huck, "We take our Christmas with lots of sugar. And we take it in a day," the Church over the last fifteen-hundred-plus years has kept the party going well into the New Year!
So why not join in?! Why not keep your tree and decorations up a bit longer, until the end of the twelve days, January 6th? Why not plan a couple more special activities with friends, family, and kids? Why not keep the Christmas carols ringing and Christmas prayers praying for a few more days?
That last one, keeping the Christmas prayers praying, I can help you with!
Starting with the sonnet below, I'll share a poem to pray each of the Twelve Days of Christmas via our Collective Prayers. I won't send a push notification every day, but just a few times to remind you to keep the party going! After all, as Bobby Gross contends, "If Advent is a season of waiting, Christmas is a season of wonder"!
May our wonder grow exponentially as we take the time to behold the gift of Christmas and are drawn into His marvelous mystery!
Love you, faith family! God bless!