We hope it is obvious by now that, in the Church calendar, Christmas does not end on Christmas Day! Everything around us, including the customs of the larger society, have clearly shifted, and saying “Merry Christmas” this week will sound foreign to many ears. Some may respond, “that was last Friday.” Restoring the ancient practice of celebrating the Twelve Days is much like swimming against the current; there is no way we are ever going to restore the old balance of having our Christmas merry-making take place during the 12 days after December 25th. Still, there are many ways we can mark the Christmas season (the one that starts with Christmas). There are many ways to deepen our Catholic identity by making the most of all Twelve Days.
One simple way to keep the Christmas season alive is to gather up all the Christmas cards you’ve received and choose one at random each evening to read at dinnertime. If you live with family or a roommate, share some memories about the person who sent you the card. If you live alone, recall how you met the person and resolve to send an e-mail, a text, or make a phone call to reconnect in the coming week.
Another way to mark the Twelve Days (and not just December 25th) is to “ring in the New Year” with a deliberately “spiritual tone.” January 1st is the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. Years ago, many Catholic households, especially German Catholics, used to pray the Rosary as a family after dinner. That custom has mostly faded, but the feast of the Mother of God is a good opportunity to revive the practice for a day. Who knows, it may become a regular practice over the course of 2021.
Yet another way to observe the fullness of the Christmas Season is to remember your “second birthday” – the day of your Baptism. The Church will celebrate the Baptism of the Lord this year on January 10th; it will mark the formal end of the season. Remembering your own Baptism will help emphasize these three truths of faith:
- At the moment of His Baptism, we discover that Jesus is the Son of God.
- We also come to know him as the Messiah at His Baptism, which is symbolized in the Gospels by the descent of the dove—an anointing in the Holy Spirit.
- Through His Baptism, which was not required of Jesus, Jesus affirms His complete solidarity with all of us who do require the saving waters of grace.
Plan to spend some time during the Twelve Days recalling the importance of your Baptism and reach out to your parents and Godparents – to say thanks!
Let us pray. “Good and gracious God, this Christmas season, all Twelve Days, gives us the gift of memory and we will remember that you became love for us, so that we can become love for others. Through Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you for ever and ever. Amen.”
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For All Those Who Mourn at this Time of Year
“Dear God, for some of us this season, there has been an empty chair near the tree, an ache in our hearts, and tears on our faces. We may have tried to shield one another from the grief we bear, but we cannot hide it from you. We pray for all those who have gone before us, especially those who have died this year, whose presence we miss so much in these Twelve Days of peace and joy. Open our hearts and minds to the healing, the warmth, and the light of your presence.
We pray, Lord, and we trust that those we miss have found the place you prepared for them, their home within your heart. Open our hearts, Lord, to joyful memories of love shared with those who have gone before us. Help us continue to tell the stories that make the past present and bring us close again to those we miss. Teach us to lean on you, Lord, and on each other, for the strength we need to walk through difficult days. Be with us as we cry and sing our way into the New Year; help us find and open the present you brought us this year – the gift of your peace in the birth of the child we call Christ. And give us quiet moments with you, with our thoughts, and with our memories and prayers.
Be with us, Lord, and hold us in your arms, even as you hold those who have gone before us. Help us to trust that, one day, we shall be with those we love when your mercy gathers us together in the joy of the life you promise us. This is the Christmas Season you have made, Lord, the only one we’ll have this year: help us to rejoice in it and in the blessings of your peace in the year ahead. In your Holy Name we pray. Amen.”
