The Twelve Days of Christmas and Epiphany

Advent is a special time of anticipation... CHRIST was coming.

Christmas Day is a special time of celebration... CHRIST entered the world.

The Twelve Days of Christmas is a special time of savoring... CHRIST with us.

Epiphany is a special time to remember our call to proclaim... CHRIST came for the world.

The increasing number of influential voices drawing the attention of Evangelicals to the Christian calendar and the practice of Advent is encouraging, and it's exciting to join together with more and more families in embracing the Advent season as an opportunity to intentionally build traditions that teach children the true meaning of the season as part of God's great redemptive plan for mankind.

I've been extremely blessed to continue studying the role of the liturgical calendar in church history. We find that the season of celebrating Christ's birth doesn't stop on Christmas Day. Christmas Day is when we remember the greatest event in human history - God entered the world. Then the Twelve Days of Christmas are a time to continue reflecting on the incarnation of Christ, and the season climaxes on January 6 with Epiphany. The origin and practice of the Twelve Days varies among cultures and church traditions. We use it as a countdown toward our celebration of Epiphany.

Epiphany means "to reveal." In the Western tradition we commemorate the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles. In the Eastern Church it is a commemoration of the baptism of Christ as His manifestation to the world as the Son of God. The Magi recognized Jesus as King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2) and came to worship Him though they were not Jewish. In doing so we remember that Jesus came for all nations, and we celebrate that we have been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-20) to proclaim the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world.

Activities and Traditions for the Twelve Days of Christmas

Whether it's fact or legend, using The Twelve Days of Christmas song as a catechism of hidden Biblical meanings is a fun way to use a nonsensical song to teach truth.

Here is a free Twelve Days of Christmas lapbook that we are making which goes along with the meanings below.

A Partridge in a Pear Tree 

Represents Jesus Christ. A partridge will often pretend to be injured to draw attention to herself and away from her young to protect them from danger. This reminds us of Christ's self sacrifice.

Two Turtle Doves 

Represent the Old and New Testaments. Turtle doves mate for life and represent the enduring relationship and unbreakable bond between the Old and New Testaments which together bear witness to God's self revelation throughout history. 

Three French Hens 

Represent the three gifts of the Magi - gold, frankincense, myrrh

Four Calling Birds 

Represent the four gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Five Golden Rings

 Represent the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.

Six Geese A-laying 

Stand for the six days of creation as eggs represent new life.

Seven Swans A-swimming 

Represent the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit:

prophecy, service, teaching, encouragement, giving, leadership, and mercy.

Eight Maids A-milking

 Stand for the eight beatitudes:

 1)blessed are the poor in spirit, 2) those who mourn, 3) the meek, 4)those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 5) the merciful, 6) the poor in heart, 7) the peacemakers, 8) those who are persecuted for righteousness sake

Nine Ladies Dancing

Represents the fruit of the Spirit:

love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control

Ten Lords A-leaping

Stands for The Ten Commandments:

 1) You shall have no other gods before me; 2) Do not make an idol; 3) Do not take God's name in vain; 4) Remember the Sabbath Day; 5) Honor your father and mother; 6) Do not murder; 7) Do not commit adultery; 8) Do not steal; 9) Do not bear false witness; 10) Do not covet. 

Eleven Pipers Piping

Stands for the eleven faithful disciples:

 1) Simon Peter, 2) Andrew, 3) James, 4) John, 5) Philip, 6) Bartholomew, 7) Matthew, 8) Thomas, 9) James bar Alphaeus, 10) Simon the Zealot, 11) Judas bar James.

Twelve Drummers Drumming

Represents the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles' Creed: 

1) I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. 2) I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. 3) He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. 4) He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell [the grave]. 5) On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. 6) He will come again to judge the living and the dead. 7) I believe in the Holy Spirit, 8) the holy catholic Church, 9) the communion of saints, 10) the forgiveness of sins, 11) the resurrection of the body, 12) and life everlasting.

Twelve Small Gifts

This year I have a mix of books and coupons. 

Reading

I never seem to get through all the Christmas read aloud books that I planned to read through the Advent season, so we keep right on snuggling up with the ones we have left! Currently still on our list include: The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey and An Angel's Story. We've also saved Babushka and The Three Kings, The Gift of the Magi, and The Story of the Other Wiseman to read as Epiphany draws near. 

Magi on the Move
Our Magi are moved all over the house during the Twelve Days of Christmas as get closer and closer to the Nativity and Epiphany. They started their journey from our attic.

Tree Untrimming

Taking down decorations is just not fun in my opinion, so we try to add a little spirit to the chore by having an "untrimming the tree" party. While listening to music each boy puts his ornaments in his special box, and then after we're done the boys get hot chocolate while I again read The First Christmas Tree: a Legend from Long Ago by Helen Haidle. She is one of my favorite Christian authors for children. She has a rare gift of writing beautiful stories for children that are filled with rich meaning and point to the gospel.

Thank You Notes

It's helpful to give myself and the boys a goal of using this allotted time to share our gratitude for the gifts we've received.

Twelve Days of Christmas "Learning" Activities
My biggest boy really likes word searches, and he practiced writing/ spelling ordinal position numbers.

My little guys made a counting book which helped them practice number recognition.