It ain't over til it's over . . .

Photo by Kelley Hudlow 12/24/2011

At nearly 9 p.m. on Christmas Day, many folks (including me) are sighing with relief that Christmas has arrived and is soon to be in the past. I have followed the posts on Facebook as friends with children have documented the joy and excitement of little hands tearing into wrapping paper, and others have shared the feasts that have been prepared, presented, and partaken. A lot of work goes into those few hours of joy. From the day after Thanksgiving until Christmas Eve, most folks run the rat race of the "Holiday Shopping Season." There are preparations for relatives and friends. Activities at work, school, and church. There is a lot to do in the Advent Season, and the time of quiet preparation is lost.

So at the end of it, most folks are ready for a break. A rest before the festivities of New Year's Eve celebrations begin leaving Christmas behind. A rest before life returns to "normal."

But for those of a liturgical persuasion, whose calendar is not just filled with government holidays, but with the Seasons of the Church Year, there is still something special. While the rest of the world rests from a season of spending and craziness, liturgical folks are just beginning the celebration. For Christmas Day is the first day, and there are eleven more to go.

That means eleven days of still singing Christmas carols, if you are so inclined. Eleven days of enjoying your Christmas tree, without worrying if you have enough presents under it. Eleven more days to celebrate the joyful outlandishness of Christmas. That God came to live among his in the form of a baby born to a teenage girl while on the road. And that all our hope for salvation is found in this fragile little child.

So it ain't over until it's over.

In traditions gone by, the end of Christmas was marked by a Twelfth Night celebration on January 5th. A celebration filed with drink and cheer, and a "king cake." The person that got the bean or trinket in the cake was the King of the festivities. The Twelfth Night marked not only the end of Christmas, but also the end of a winter festival that began on All Hallow's Eve, where the Lord of Misrule was in charge. This time was a celebration of the world being turned upside down. A fitting celebration for the birth of Jesus.

The birth of Jesus has turned the world upside down. It is the beginning of new creation. It is the reversal of order that Mary sang about In Luke 1:46-55:

‘My soul magnifies the Lord, 
   and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, 
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
   Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
   and holy is his name. 
His mercy is for those who fear him
   from generation to generation. 
He has shown strength with his arm;
   he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
   and lifted up the lowly; 
he has filled the hungry with good things,
   and sent the rich away empty. 
He has helped his servant Israel,
   in remembrance of his mercy, 
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
   to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’


So rest tonight, but don't move so quickly through Christmas. Celebrate all the way through. The celebration of Christmas marks God's love breaking into the world.


Merry First Day of Christmas!