By Brea Cannon
Liturgical Rhythm of Life
The upcoming Christmas season encourages us with many memorials and feast days and inspires us to live solely for the glory of our new born King. The greatest of these feasts is the Nativity of our Lord. Christmas is such an important feast that it is impossible to contain and understand all of the miracle and mystery of the Incarnation into just one day. Because of this, the Church gives us the Christmas octave — the eight days of extended celebration that follow Christmas and lead us to the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Jan. 1.
Each day of the octave is treated with high importance and is elevated to a solemnity. The first historical documentation of the octave celebration dates back to the 4th century and has been associated with many feasts over the years. Today, Christmas and Easter each have an octave. Throughout history, people have celebrated the octave with nightly Christmas caroling and the daily celebrations associated with the liturgy. Pull out your calendar and take notes for this year’s Christmas octave:
Dec. 25 — The Nativity of our Lord: Christmas is a Holy Day of Obligation and a great opportunity to invite loved ones and family members to Mass. Take some time on this day to reflect on the second person of the blessed Trinity, God the Son.
Dec. 26 — Feast of St. Steven, the first martyr: Stoned to death, St. Steven defended the faith in the early days of the Church. Many faithful have gone before us defending and preserving the faith. On this day, make a small sacrifice for the lives given in faith and for the strength to stand firm in faith even in moments of persecution.
Dec. 27 — St. John the Apostle: As a medieval tradition, this is the day for blessing wine. The tradition of blessing and drinking the wine has been called “Love of Saint John,” because the legend claims St. John once drank a cup of poison without hard. People drank their blessed wine during wedding celebrations or in times of travel, for protection. A sip of the St. John wine was used as a sacramental for someone dying after receiving the sacraments. This year, consider planning ahead and have some wine of your own blessed for special occasions. “Drink the love of St. John!”
Dec. 28 — Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph: This feast was established to draw attention to the holiness of the Holy Family as a model for families today. Let us pray for all families — may homes be the domestic church on earth. Foster the importance of family in your community. Make a meal or show support to another family as a gesture of love and support for the difficulties families face today.
Dec. 29 — St. Thomas Becket, martyr: When the Church was facing a rough time in England in the 12th century, Thomas Becket stood up to King Henry II and was ultimately killed in the Canterbury Cathedral.
Dec. 31 — Pope St. Sylvester: Pope Sylvester was selected pope one year after the Edict of Milan and the freedom Constantine gave Christians. The Church flourished under his papacy. Pope Sylvester supported the Council of Nicaea in 325 and approved the Nicene Creed, still recited at every Sunday Mass. Reflect on the Nicene Creed and check out the Message’s Connecting Creed and Life column to connect this ancient profession of faith to your daily life.
Jan. 1 — Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Holy Mother of God: This is a Holy Day of Obligation and a great opportunity to dedicate the new year to Jesus and his blessed mother Mary. Take some time and write down some of your cares and worries from the previous year and give them completely to the Blessed Mother in the New Year.
Christmas and Easter are two of our greatest feasts in our liturgical calendar and in the story of salvation. This year, take some notes and plan to extend your Christmas celebration beyond Dec. 25 — leave the decorations up a little longer, plan some fun and rest in the mystery of the Incarnation for the Christmas octave. We read in John’s Gospel, “Jesus came that we may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). This year, live the Christmas season abundantly!