Christmas Season

Christmas season at Vatican City

The Christmas season celebrates the mystery of the Incarnation and the manifestation of Jesus Christ to the world: past, present and future.

The mystery and feast of Christmas (the Nativity of the Lord) is second only to Easter in the liturgical life of the Church. The Christmas season begins after evening prayer on December 25th and continues through the Baptism of the Lord. The first week of the season is the octave of Christmas which closes on the feast of the Mother of God.  Some cultures preserve the traditions of “Twelve Days” for the celebration, extending Christmas Day through Epiphany.

The Octave of Christmas

Why celebrate for eight days?  The practice actually is as ancient as the Old Testament.  The Hebrew people observed many of their feasts for a period of eight days.  The “Feast of Tabernacles” and the “Dedication of the Temple” are two of the more notable.  Later, the Roman Emperor Constantine continued the tradition by celebrating the dedication of basilicas in the Christian World for the same period of eight days.  Prior to the Second Vatican Council, which closed in 1965, the Church granted certain feasts the dignity of an octave.  In addition to the more prominent liturgical observations of Easter, Pentecost, Epiphany, the feasts of Sts. Peter and St. Paul, St. Lawrence, and St. Agnes were observed.  Today we celebrate two feasts with Octaves:  Easter (being the more prominent) and Christmas.

Again, so why celebrate for eight days?  Life in the ancient world was so hectic and filled with pressure and families had grown apart and were being swept up in the older pagan traditions, the Church granted a period of eight days in order to contemplate the mysteries experienced in the Church’s liturgy.  Comparatively speaking, we obviously need the Octave even more than the Christians of the ancient world!  The ancient world did not have television, shopping malls, computers, telephones, fast food, automobiles, magazines and newspapers… if the Ancients were busily distracted, what has become of us!? We need to enjoy this time!  If you need, take off work, visit family, feast, attend Mass, praise God, visit the poor, celebrate charity, and most of all be humbled before the Mystery:  The Word of God has become man!

For many years the Christmas season did not so much end as Peter out; technically it lasted until February 2nd (then called the Feast of the Purification) even though the time “after Epiphany” had already begun. The Baptism of the Lord was added to the calendar in 1960 as part of the reforms of Blessed John XXIII. Celebrated on January 13th it was fixed as the end of the Christmas season.  This feast is now celebrated on the Sunday (sometimes the Monday) after Epiphany and brings the season to a close; Ordinary Time begins.

Although not part of the Christmas season, February 2nd (the Presentation of the Lord) and March 25th (The Annunciation) continue the celebration of the mystery of Christmas during the year.

Today true peace came down to us from heaven.
Today a new day dawns,
the day of our redemption,
prepared by God from ages past,
the beginning of our never ending gladness.
Christmas Responsory

History

Most historians agree that the celebration of Christmas did not begin until about the fourth century, although they are not certain exactly how or why Christmas began as a Christian festival.

The most commonly accepted conclusion is that Christmas originated in Roman culture that celebrated the winter solstice on December 25 (the solstice is the point where the sun’s ecliptic, or apparent path in the sky, is at its furthermost northern and southern point, occurring by our calendar around June 22 and December 22; in the northern hemisphere, we note these days today as the beginning of Summer and Winter). This was a pagan celebration of the birth of the sun (Natalis Solis Invicti) as it once again began its annual journey back north from its southernmost point through the heavens. This marked the change of seasons that promised springtime and renewal of the earth. Christians were reluctant to participate in the pagan festivals, yet the cultural and social pressures to participate were enormous. By the early fourth century, Christians began celebrating the birth of Jesus at this time, so it is likely that Christmas was as an alternative to the pagan observance of the winter solstice.

Aspect of the Season

Christmas is a season of feasts. Some are celebrations of various aspects of the mystery of the Nativity, while others are feasts in their own right that are as old as or older than the Christmas feast itself. Unlike the days immediately after Easter (the octave or eight days), the period after Christmas sees the inclusion of many and varied celebrations.

These feasts reflect on various facets of the Christmas event. 

Holy Innocents: reflecting Matthew 2.13-18, December 28th

Holy Family: the Sunday after Christmas or December 30th

Solemnity of Mary: January 1st has commemorated the Circumcision (and Naming) of Jesus and been simply the “Octave Day” of Christmas. The celebration of Mary brings the day to the earliest of her titles and the oldest feast in honor of the Mother of God.

Holy Name of Jesus: January 3rd

Epiphany: a feast from the Eastern Churches and the original Eastern celebration of Christ’s birth.  It now commemorates the “manifestation” of Christ to the nations and is kept on January 6th or the Sunday after January 1st. The liturgical texts centre on the magi, but include as well references to Jesus’ baptism and his first miracle at Cana as images of his appearance to the world, event that are celebrated specifically later on.

Baptism of the Lord: Jesus begins his saving work; the Sunday (or Monday) after Epiphany.

Other Feasts:

26th St. Stephen, first Christian martyr
27th St. John, apostle, evangelist

And in some places:
29th St. Thomas Becket, martyr, bishop
31st St. Sylvester, pope

Scriptural Readings for Christmas

The readings for the three Masses of Christmas have formed part of the liturgy of the day by long tradition. The Mass at Midnight originates from the 5th Century celebration in the “cave” chapel at St. Mary Major in Rome.

The Dawn service (sometimes called the Mass of the Shepherds) originated from a service to honour the Byzantine Greeks who lived in Rome and was celebrated in their church of St. Anastasia.

The Day Mass is the oldest and original celebration and centres on the reading of John’s Prologue and the light that comes into the world.

Texts for the Vigil Mass (celebrated in the evening before the Night service) are also included in the Missal.

Christmas Weekdays offer a semi-continuous reading of the First Letter of John traditionally associated with the Christmas season. The gospels present the manifestations of the Lord: his childhood (Luke), the signs of the Gospel of John and miracles in the other Gospels.

Bethlehem itself reflects the richness of the season. It means “house of bread” and reminds us of Jesus, the Bread of Life whose Nativity we celebrate.

Two Holydays of Obligation (December 25th and January 1st) are observed during the Christmas season in the Philippines.

Christmas Traditions

The Christmas Tree

 The Christmas tree probably originated from popular mediaeval religious plays. Primarily a tradition for the home (although it is often used in the decoration of churches) it has a deep Christological significance: Christ is the true tree of life, born of human stock, of the Virgin Mary, the tree which is always green and productive.

The Christmas Crib

The Christ Child in the manger and other pictures of the story of Bethlehem has been used in church services from the first centuries. It is a favourite part of home Christmas decoration.

The crib unites the gospel stories of Luke (angels and shepherds) and Matthew (magi) along with images from the Old Testament (manger and animals). Aspects of national and family traditions are often included in the design of the manger scene.

Saint Francis of Assisi is credited with creating the first nativity scene in 1223 (a "living" one) intending thereby to cultivate the worship of Christ, having been inspired by his recent visit to the Holy Land where he had been shown Jesus's traditional birthplace.

In the parish church, the crib is ideally set up outside the sanctuary area. It is never placed under or near the altar but may provide an important focus for the decoration of the building.

The Christmas Light

From the end of Advent through the Baptism of the Lord, houses and Christmas trees are usually illuminated.

From its Roman origin in the northern hemisphere of the earth during a season in which the days’ light is becoming longer, Christmas also is a festival of light: “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (Jn 1.5). Following the rising star, from East to Jerusalem, magi were guided to the newly-born Jesus, “the Light of the world”; whoever follows him “will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (Jn 8.12).

Blessing of Families

Many places have a tradition of blessing families on New Year’s Day or on the feast of the holy Family. This is an especially impotent tradition in French speaking Canada. Some parishes include an aspect of this at the New Year’s or Holy Family liturgy.

Blessing of Homes

Epiphany is often associated with the blessing of homes. The tradition includes inscribing the door frame with the Cross of salvation, with the indication of the year and the initials of the three wise men (C.M.B for Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, their legendary names in the West since the 7th century). It expresses the blessing of Christ through the intercession of the three wise men and is an occasion for gathering offerings for charities and missionaries.

How wonderful a transformation,
how mysterious a design,
how inconceivable a blessing!
The wickedness of the many
is covered up in the holy One,
and the holiness of One
sanctifies many sinners.
Letter to Diognetus

Sources:

http://www.fisheaters.com/customschristmas1.html

http://www.saintmarycathedral.org/The_Octave.htm

http://www.cccb.ca/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2122&Itemid=1226&lang=eng

http://www.cresourcei.org/cyxmas.html