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On the Twelfth Day of Christmas

© Virginia Marin

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"On the Twelfth Day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me"... Well, you know what comes next in this jauntily sung Christmas carol that really taxes one's memory, as well as his ability to count correctly. This carol was actually composed as a catachism code during the days of the Roman persecution of Christians.

The Twelfth Day of Christmas, celebrated as the Feast of Epiphany in many parts of the world is often as important as Christmas. Epiphany falls twelve days after Christmas which, if one counts correctly, is January 6th. It is traditionally when the Magi, or the Three Wise Men, arrive from the East bearing gifts for the Christ Child. In some countries, it is traditional to give and receive gifts on Epiphany rather than on Christmas, in honor of this event.

The Vigil of Epiphany, January 5th, is known as Twelfth Night. This day has become quite popular in the United States for gala celebrations. The home festivities are often taken into the streets where the mood is Mardi Gras-like. Indeed, in some locals, Twelfth Night is the early beginning of the Lenten celebration.

But, public Twelfth Night celebrations are far removed from the deeply religious meanings associated with the Vigil of Epiphany. The Catholic Church, and some others, celebrate the Vigil of Epiphany as well as Epiphany with Mass, and a change in the liturgical colors of vestments and altar coverings. A public Twelfth Night, on the other hand, looks back to a pagan celebration filled with merrymaking when the Bean-King was crowned. The festivities derive from the Saturnalia of ancient Rome which occured during the same time as Christian celebrations. Shakespeare's play, Twelfth Night, was named and written for the festivities of the Pagan Twelfth Night revels.

Today, traditional celebrants of Twelfth Night partake of a cake in which a few beans were inserted prior to baking. The first male and female to find a bean in their piece of cake are crowned King and Queen for the night. The cake is decorated in traditional colors of purple, green, and gold icing. Purple represents Justice, green represents Faith, and gold represents Power. It is customary for the King and Queen to host next year's Twelfth Night party.

Twelfth Night parties are similar to a masquarade in that participants wear costume and may often be masked. Three favorite costumes are those depicting the Magi--Casper, King of Tarsus; Melchoir, King of Arabia; and Balthasar, King of Saba.

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