Vol. 1, Issue 3: Epiphany and Christmastide
A deliberate Twelve (well, thirteen) Days
Welcome, Friends!
And a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours from Signs + Seasons!
Our secular culture declares Christmas at an end today (if not before). And I think we all do understand the desire to start the new year simply! But the Christian Liturgical Year has a different gift in mind for us.
Indeed, on this the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, we are actually only midway through the wonderfully merry season of Christmastide, which lasts from December 25 until January 5, and is then crowned with the great feast of Epiphany on January 6, when we remember the Magi.1
So there is still merry-making to be done, friends! And nourishing pondering and prayer, as well. In this spirit, we hope you will be inspired by the meaningful pieces we have collected here about Christmastide and Epiphany. And please come back and tell us some of your own favorite traditions in the comments on this post!
Peace and joy be with you,
From the Editors
A Sweet Christmas Octave
- weaves together thoughts on family traditions and honoring the Jewish roots of Christianity.
On the First Day of Christmas…
- offers her paid subscribers a truly lovely (as always!) set of Christmastide printable scenes, one for each of the Twelve Days!
The Twelve Days of Christmas
- suggests five ways to extend your celebrations without extending the holiday pressure (don’t miss this amazing French Epiphany cake!).
Around Substack
Christmas is Complicated
This essay by
is not strictly about liturgical living, but it illustrates that many of us do not have the kind of family Christmas we might desire (and there are many reasons that this happens). If this is you, you are not alone. Perhaps we can rebuild things together. All is not lost!
Twelfth Night
- shares some Twelfth Night and Epiphany traditions (and thoughts on Shakespeare’s play) and asks when we take down the Christmas tree.
The Golden Thread of Epiphany
Sometimes faith brings comfort and sometime it brings the Cross. The two are wound together as
considers Epiphany.
Christmastide
- explores the Twelve Days (and announces her book contract!).
Reyes Magos
This look into the Mexican “Guadalupe-Reyes Marathon” of celebration from
includes another type of Epiphany cake!
The New Math of Christmas
This is a great breakdown by
of the different calendar versions of Christmastide. Also, don’t miss The Thirteenth Day of Christmas!
Christmastide Playlists for Prayer and Celebration
Scroll to the end of this page to see
‘s wonderful music playlists for Christmastide!
Baptism by Rain
- explains the meaning of Orthodox Christian Theophany water traditions.
Babies, Bathtubs, and Emmanuel
- connects bath-hating babies to the gift of the Incarnation (and also links to several allergen-free Christmas recipes).
We Three Kings
- invites us to enter more deeply into the story of the Magi.
The Holy Innocents
Reflections from
on the “severe mercy” of martyrdom and loss. Also, check out Denise’s other recent posts on other feasts during Christmastide!
Around the Web
First, a notice: would like to invite you to an online Liturgical Living Christmastide Happy Hour on January 6 at 8 p.m. EST. Click HERE for details!
Undecorating on Twelfth Night
A quiet poem by
about a meaningful task at Christmas’ end.
Christmas Carols in the Home
Sofia Cuddeback offers advice and resources for singing Christmas Carols in the home (scroll halfway down the page to reach this section).
A Merry Memorandum
What should
be doing one one of the Twelve Days of Christmas, and what does she actually do? Plus, a brief book review of Rutledge’s Epiphany.
Keep the Party Going- The 12 Days of Christmas
Here Steffani Aquila shares ideas for each of the Twelve Days, plus a Louisiana King Cake recipe.
Los Inocentes
The Spanish have a tradition of pranking one another on the Feast of the Holy Innocents (Dec. 28). This article, shared by
, explains why.
Join us for our next edition of Signs + Seasons!
Theme suggestion: Family Feast Days (baptism anniversaries, name days, etc.)
Contribution deadline: January 10
Publishing date: January 15
In peace,
Kristin, Sara, & Dixie
There are several variations in the length of the Christmas season depending on the particular denominational tradition or the choices of pastors and bishops. Some Christians celebrate Christmas until February 2, the feast of Candlemas, and many modern Catholic churches celebrate a Christmas Octave (8 days) and also transfer Epiphany to a Sunday, and—well, I could go on, but let’s stick with the old-fashioned Twelve Days here for clarity’s sake!
I’ve made this amazing Galette des Rois:
https://www.theosfeast.com/post/celebrate-epiphany-with-our-galette-de-rois
I will take pleasure in exploring these resources! Thank you so much.
My in-laws are Cuban so Christmas was never that much of big deal for them (it was outlawed at one point I believe), but kings was a big deal. Recently we’ve started celebrating Kings Day with a traditional Cuban feast of roasted pork, rice & beans and plantains. We use it a way to honor my husbands cultural roots and live out our faith at the same time.