Hi there! It’s a new week, and yes, we are more or less 12 days away to Christmas. Needless to say, by this time we’ve heard more than enough of our share of Christmas songs, or carols (I’m wondering how is one different from the other.) Anyway, last Friday, I mentioned something about “The 12 days of Christmas”, one of the most loved (or otherwise, depending upon your mood I guess) songs of Christmas; and how much would the gifts given on those 12 days would cost us in today’s dollars. After the dollar signs, it’s time for us to dissect as to exactly what the song is all about. Let me give you part of the article written by Diana Mackinen, something which I got from www.littlechicagoreview.com.
“…some of us love it and some of us don’t. However there is a hidden meaning in the song “The 12 Days of Christmas” and it is very interesting. In England from 1558 to 1829, Catholics were prohibited by law to practice their faith either in public or private. In fact it was illegal to be Catholic until 1829 when the English Parliament finally emancipated the religion. Those practicing the Catholic faith and caught would be imprisoned or executed. The song was written in England as one of the ‘catechism songs’ to help young children learn the basics of their faith. It was a coded-message, a memory aid. The song, itself, sounded like rhyming nonsense and the young children of the Catholic faith could sing the song. The powers that be did not know the real meaning of the song.
“The 12 Days of Christmas” is in a sense an allegory. Each of the items in the song represents something significant to the teachings of the faith. The hidden meaning of each gift was designed to help children learn their faith and better understand the Bible. The song goes, “On the first day of Christmas my true love game to me…. “True love” is referring to God Himself and the “me” who receives the present refers to every baptized person, i.e. the Church.
- Day 1 The partridge in a pear tree is Christ Jesus upon the Cross. In the song, Christ is symbolically presented as a mother partridge because she would feign injury to decoy a predator away from her nestlings. She was even willing to die for them. The tree is the symbol of the fall of the human race through the sin of Adam and Eve. It is also the symbol of its redemption by Jesus Christ on the tree of the cross.
- Day 2 The “two turtle doves” refers to the Old and New Testaments.
- Day 3 The “three French hens” stands for faith, hope and love - the three gifts of the Spirit that abided (1 Corinthians 13).
- Day 4 The “four calling birds” refers to the four evangelists who wrote the Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - which sing the song of salvation through Jesus Christ.
- Day 5 The “five golden rings” represents the first five books of the Bible, also called the Jewish torah; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.
- Day 6 The “six geese a-laying” is the six days of creation.
- Day 7 The “seven swans a-swimming” refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord.
- Day 8 The “eight maids a milking” reminded children of the eight beatitudes listed in the Sermon on the Mount.
- Day 9 The "nine ladies dancing” were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
- Day 10 The “ten lords a-leaping” represents the Ten Commandments.
- Day 11 The “eleven pipers piping” refers to the eleven faithful apostles.
- Day 12 The “twelve drummers drumming’’ were the twelve points of belief expressed in the Apostles’ Creed belief in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, made man, crucified, died and rose on the third day, that he sits at the right hand of the father and will come again, the resurrection of the dead and the life everlasting.
The song is only sung at Christmas time now, but its hidden meaning saved the lives and religious faith of many during the 271 years the Catholic faith was outlawed in England. The next time you hear this song, consider how this otherwise non-religious and to some annoying, song had its origins in keeping alive the teaching of the Catholic faith. By-the-way, if you were to purchase all of the gifts in the song, it would cost you over $87,000.
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“Riot sa Calbayog” with Pooh, K Brosas, Princess Ryan and Joseph Bitangcol. This one-night engagement will be held at the Calbayog City Sports Center this coming Friday, December 18, 2009. For details contact Ritchie at 0906-520-8161
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Parokya ni Edgar will be performing at the Calbayog City Sports Center on December 21, 2009. For tickets you may call (055) 209-1646.
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Have a nice week everyone! Ciao!
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