Category: Christmas

The 12 Days of Christmas Carol (w/ Bonus)

I found this on another blogsite searching for something else, but I thought it was cool.

It appears that from the mid 1500s through 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. So, in the same vein as “Ring around the Rosie” came to us depicting the Great Plague of London in the 1600s, someone penned a catechism of sorts for young Catholics to aide in remembering 12 tenets of the faith. Each “day” of the carol has a hidden meaning to the faith, making it something they could remember.

Here’s what I found

  • The Partridge in a Pear Tree was Jesus Christ.
  • The Two Turtle Doves were the Old and New Testaments.
  • The Three French Hens stood for faith, hope and love.
  • The Four Calling Birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.
  • The Five Golden Rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
  • The Six Geese a-Laying stood for the six days of creation.
  • The Seven Swans a-Swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit–Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
  • The Eight Maids a-Milking were the eight beatitudes.
  • The Nine Ladies Dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit–Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
  • The Ten Lords a-Leaping were the ten commandments.
  • The Eleven Pipers Piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
  • The Twelve Drummers Drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.

Bonus: The Apostles Creed – I thought I’d include the Apostles Creed (slightly modified from the Catholic catechism to reflect the Big-C Church, and not just the Roman Catholic church.

The late great Rich Mullins has a great song called Creed – click to hear it for free –(you may have to be on my blogsite (http://runningafterpapa.blogspot.com) to hear this… the link may not come through for all you who subscribe by email)

  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.
  5. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again.
  6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
  7. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
  8. I believe in the Holy Spirit,
  9. [One] holy Church, the communion of saints,
  10. the forgiveness of sins,
  11. the resurrection of the body,
  12. and the life everlasting. Amen.

Merry CHRISTmas to you all.

Running After Papa…

Running After Papa