We attended the “Winter” Sing at Emily’s school this week. Despite the title, it was Christmas songs. I suppose they would have shut the school down if they had advertised it as a Christmas Sing. Anyhow, we had a great time and it seems like Emily knew every word to every song.
One song they didn’t sing was “The 12 Days of Christmas.” I’ve always been curious about that song… it appears to be a song about someone that gets lots of presents from their ‘true love.’ I have to admit that there’s lots of songs that don’t make a lot of sense to me, but I decided to do some extensive research on this one, seeing how it’s Christmas time and all that.
In the real world Christmas Day, December 25th, ushers in 12 days of celebration, ending on January 6 with he feast of the Epiphany. The 12 Days have been celebrated in Europe since before the middle ages and many sources that I checked indicated that each day of the 12 Days celebrate a feast day for a saint and/or have different celebrations. Some of these I’m aware of, or have at least heard of, such as Day 2 (26 December) known as Boxing Day and also St. Stephen’s Day… Day 4 (28 December) is the Feast of the Holy Innocents… and Day 12 (5 January) known as Epiphany Eve. It’s interesting that Day 11 (4 January) celebrates St. Elizabeth Ann Seton — her shrine is just a few miles from our house.
Anyhow, the point is, I guess, that The 12 Days of Christmas is more than just a song. But — the song itself has lots of legends and stories attached to it…. “The 12 Days of Christmas” is an English Christmas carol. It turns out that from 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. One story has it that during that era someone wrote this song that has two levels of meanings. The obvious words of course, but those words supposedly have a hidden meaning known only to members of the Church. Apparently, each verse of the carol had a code word with a religious meaning… for instance, the “True Love” in the song is not a boyfriend or girlfriend, but Jesus Christ, because “true” Love was born on Christmas Day. The partridge in the pear tree also represents Jesus because that bird is willing to sacrifice its life if necessary to protect its young.
According to the story, the symbols mean:
– 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, and John
– The five golden rings represented the first five books of the Old Testament, which describe man’s fall into sin and the great love of God in sending a Savior
– The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation
– 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
– Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit — Charity, Joy, Peach, Patience, Goodness, Mildness, Fidelity, Modesty, Chastity
– The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments
– The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful Apostles
– The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in The Apostles’ Creed
So if there is really a hidden meaning to the song, I suppose it becomes religious… maybe that’s why it wasn’t on the list at Emily’s school. The fact is that this hidden meaning story probably isn’t true, but even if it’s not, it makes for an interesting interpretation and something to think about.
Calvin Coolidge once said, “Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind.”
For Christmas, I hope our home and yours, is filled with laughter, our lives filled with love and our hearts are full of hope….
Merry Christmas!
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