Wednesday, December 28, 2022

Dec 28th: The Feast of the Holy Innocents

 December 28 is the feast day of the Holy Innocents. Ever since the 5th century, the Church has commemorated this day in memory of the children killed by King Herod after Jesus’ birth. Herod the Great was known for consolidating Roman rule over and advancing the Hellenization of Judaea. He built the city of Sebaste on the site of ancient Samaria as well as the port city of Caesarea and rebuilt the Temple of Jerusalem. But when he was visited by wise men from the East who were looking for the “newborn king of the Jews”, he was greatly disturbed. He asked the Magi what Scripture said of the location where the child would be born. They told him it would happen in Bethlehem. So Herod told the wise men to look for the child and then report back to him so he could also do him homage. The Magi found the Holy family and gave the child gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The Magi were warned by an angel that they should not report back to Herod. They went back home by a different route. Joseph also received a message from an angel and fled with his family to Egypt. Herod eventually realized that the Magi were not coming back. He was furious at being disobeyed. He ordered that all boys under the age of two who lived near Bethlehem should be killed. By doing this, he hoped that he would also be destroying the Christ child. The Holy Innocents remind us that as the Universal Church teaches, all life is precious and that the most vulnerable among us must be protected.  





"When the magi had departed, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I tell you.
Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod,
that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled,
Out of Egypt I called my son.

When Herod had died, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel,
for those who sought the child’s life are dead.”
He rose, took the child and his mother,
and went to the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea
in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go back there.
And because he had been warned in a dream,
he departed for the region of Galilee.
He went and dwelt in a town called Nazareth,
so that what had been spoken through the prophets
might be fulfilled,
He shall be called a Nazorean
."



The Massacre of the Innocents is the incident described in the nativity narrative of the Gospel of Matthew (2:16–18) in which Herod the Great, king of Judea, orders the execution of all male children who are two years old and under in the vicinity of Bethlehem. Church tradition commemorates them as the first Christian martyrs. Since Matthew is the only one to record the event and the details surrounding it are slim, it has led to speculation, some like Maier, Paul L. (1998). "Herod and the Infants of Bethlehem",  even suggesting the event to be myth, or legend. Analogous To  DavidTurner,  writing for the Jerusalem Post where he posists that Anti-Judaism in Christian scripture directly led to the “Jewish Problem”, and where he cites Dr. Eisenman: "Dr Eisenman emphasizes that nowhere, at least not in Jewish scripture, are Jews accused of having murdered their prophets" -  Maeir argues that because the story of the massacre is found in no gospel other than Matthew, nor is it mentioned in the surviving works of Nicolaus of Damascus, who was a personal friend of Herod the Great, nor in Josephus's Antiquities of the Jews, despite his recording many of Herod's misdeeds including the murder of three of his own sons “In view of the lack of independent confirmation that the event ever occurred, scholars consider it folklore inspired by Herod's reputation.  The event is alluded to by Macrobius, a pagan writing in the early 5th century: "On hearing that the son of Herod, king of the Jews, had been slain when Herod ordered that all boys in Syria under the age of two be killed, [Augustus] said, 'It’s better to be Herod’s pig than his son.'"





While the biblical episode is usually labeled a “massacre,” to emphasize the ruthless spilling of innocent blood. It was a terrible act, though it pales in comparison to the modern day killing of innocent children throughout the world, including the Black Genocide.




According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, “The Greek Liturgy asserts that Herod killed 14,000 boys (ton hagion id chiliadon Nepion), the Syrians speak of 64,000, [and] many medieval authors of 144,000.” Modern writers reduce the number considerably, since Bethlehem was a rather small town. Knabenbauer brings it down to fifteen or twenty (Evang. S. Matt., I, 104), Bisping to ten or twelve (Evang. S. Matt.), Kellner to about six (Christus and seine Apostel, Freiburg, 1908); cf. "Anzeiger kath. Geistlichk. Deutschl.", 15 Febr., 1909, p. 32. While this cruel deed of Herod as Maeir noted, is not mentioned by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, although he relates quite a number of atrocities committed by the king during the last years of his reign. The number of these children was so small that this crime appeared insignificant amongst the other misdeeds of Herod. Macrobius (Saturn., IV, xiv, de Augusto et jocis ejus) relates that when Augustus heard that amongst the boys of two years and under Herod's own son also had been massacred, he said: "It is better to be Herod's hog [ous], than his son [houios]," alluding to the Jewish law of not eating, and consequently not killing, swine. But the "infant" mentioned by Macrobius, is Antipater, the adult son of Herod, who, by command of the dying king was decapitated for having conspired against the life of his father.

Regardless of how many children were killed, their deaths were a horrible atrocity, and Jesus could have been part of that number if Joseph had not been warned to flee beforehand.


RELATED 

Did Herod actually kill the “Holy Innocents


https://aleteia.org/2019/12/31/did-herod-actually-kill-the-holy-innocents/


Tuesday, December 27, 2022

Feast of Saint John, Apostle and evangelist

 Today. December 27, we celebrate the Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist – the “disciple Jesus loved” (John 13:23).  The author of a Gospel account, three epistles, and the book of Revelation, John was a close friend of Jesus, a spiritual teacher and the only disciple  who was not marryred, living to about 100 years of age —shortly before he passed away—John wrote the Book of Revelation, the fourth Gospel, and his three epistles. His writing is symbolized by an eagle, soaring to the greatest theological and mystical heights.






Today's Reading;

"Beloved:
What was from the beginning,
what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes,
what we looked upon
and touched with our hands
concerns the Word of life —
for the life was made visible;
we have seen it and testify to it
and proclaim to you the eternal life
that was with the Father and was made visible to us— 
what we have seen and heard
we proclaim now to you,
so that you too may have fellowship with us;
for our fellowship is with the Father
and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
We are writing this so that our joy may be complete." - 1 Jn 1:1-4

John was a fisherman with his father Zebedee and his brother James the Greater, joining Simon Peter and Andrew as "Fishers of men" -  a phrase used in the gospels to describe the mandate given by Jesus to his first disciples. Two brother fishermen, Simon called Peter and Andrew, were casting a net into the Sea of Galilee. As he commenced his preaching ministry, Jesus called them
to follow him and told them that in doing so they were to become "fishers of men". The phrase is mentioned in Matthew 4:19 and Mark 1:17.
Likewise, when Our Lord called John to follow Him, John immediately left his nets, father, and home.

From that time, he remained very close to Jesus, witnessing along with Peter and James miracles and revelations—such as the Transfiguration—for which the other Apostles were not present.

After Jesus’ Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension, John stayed in Palestine for about twelve years, evangelizing there with the other Apostles. Eventually he went to preach in Ephesus, and from then on traveled a great deal, preaching, baptizing, and ministering to the new Catholic communities.

John was unique from all the other Apostles in his relationship with Our Lord. It was John who watched at the foot of the Cross when all others fled. It was John who was charged to care for the Blessed Mother as her son. It was John who felt the beating Heart of the One Who loved the world so much He became man to redeem it.

St. Paul called John “a pillar of the early Church” because he was a firm, reliable guide who worked tirelessly on behalf of the Church



       

For the Birds Episode 9: Model Parakeet Parents

We live in an age where people refuse to take responsibility for their own actions but demand apologies and reparations for atrocities they never experienced, from people who never committed them. They like to cancel art, ideas, symbols, language & history they don't agree with - they even cancel names of military bases - and MSM celebrates!


Our newly minted parakeet. Parents are demonstrating to be more responsible than a lot of humans of adult age:




Ocean is responsible for gathering food so he can feed mom as she lays in the nest, taking care of the kids

They both demonstrate situational awareness, whispering when the kids are asleep.

Their normal sleep hours are 10:00 pm to 10:00 am;  during this period, the lights are out & the cage is covered. That changed during the gestation period - wanting to go to bed early, and getting up later.

After the parakids (we think they are two or three) were birn, that changed again. The babies, like their human counterparts are fuzzy abd needy  - they are chirping away prior to 10:00:  Sunny has to leave the nest earlier thsn usual to prepare the bottle for the parakids.

We have not decipherrd baby parakeets' chirping, but seems to go from being hungry, uncomfortable or in pain.  Ocean & Sunny abd Ocean are  taking care of the kids as if they had been born professional parents.



RELATED
https://cotobuzz.blogspot.com/2021/11/for-birds-episode-seven-great-get-away.html


Monday, December 26, 2022

The Feast of Saint Stephen, The First Martyr.

Today, we celebrate the Feast of Saint Stephen, the first martyr.  Besides honoring St Stephen, this illustrates the importance of Faith & Reason. Shows how the uneducated shame the enlightened while illustrating the Threshold of Belief.  Where   Threshold of belief (TOB)is defined as a level, point, or value above which a person is no longer willing to believe something is true or will take place and below which the person willingly accepts as true

Stephen, filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the people. Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and people from Cilicia and Asia, came forward and debated with Stephen, but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.   As they were stoning Stephen, he called out “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” ACTS 6:8-10; 7:54-59




By all accounts, Saul of Tarus was a highly educated, enlightened Hebrew: Paul describes himself as a Hebrew, an Israelite, and a descendant of Abraham (2 Corinthians 11:22),  a Pharisee of the tribe of Benjamin (Philippians 3:5). Saul was born to Jewish parents who possessed Roman citizenship, a coveted privilege that their son would also inherit. Not much different from being born an American Citizens today. Saul began his studies of the Hebrew Scriptures and an in-depth study of the Law in the city of Jerusalem under Rabbi Gamaliel. Saul was likely present at the trial of Stephen, with the trial ending in Stephen becoming the first Christian martyr (Acts 7:54–60). Luke tells us that Stephen’s executioners laid their garments at the feet of Saul (Acts 7:58), who was in full approval of the mob’s murderous actions (Acts 8:1). Saul later ravaged the church, entering the homes of believers and committing them to prison. Saul’s anti-Christian zeal motivated him not only to arrest and imprison male Christians (the “ringleaders”) but to lock up female believers as well (Acts 8:3).






While on his way to Damascus to arrest and extradite Christians back to Jerusalem, Saul was confronted by the very One whom he was persecuting (Acts 9:3–9; 22:6–11; 26:12–18). What followed was one of the most dramatic conversions in church history and illustrates the Threshold of Faith:  Once presented with a persuasive argument, Saul of Tarsus became the apostle Paul, an ardent missionary to an unbelieving world and a fine example of faithful service in the face of fierce persecution (Acts 14:19; 16:22–24; 2 Corinthians 11:25–26). Saul’s education, his background as a Pharisee, his Roman citizenship, and his unflagging zeal all contributed to his success as a missionary, once those credentials and traits had been subjugated to the lordship of Christ. Consistent with the Four Candles of Advent:  The four candles of Advent are lit in the weeks leading up to Christmas, often on an Advent wreath. The first is known as the Prophecy Candle. This candle symbolizes hope, as it looks forward to the Messiah’s birth. The second candle is usually lit on the second Sunday of Advent and is called the Bethlehem Candle. This candle symbolizes peace. The third candle is lit on the third Sunday of Advent and is known as the Shepherd’s Candle. This candle symbolizes joy and its color is usually pink or rose. The fourth and last candle is lit on the fourth Sunday of Advent and symbolizes love All together, the four candles of Advent represent hope, peace, joy, and love,  the four primary sentiments of not only  the Advent season, but the Universal Church.

David Turner however, in a gross misapplication of the theory of allocation, writing for the Jerusalem Post posits that Anti-Judaism in Christian scripture directly led to the "Jewish Problem: - From anti-Judaism to anti-Semitism to the Holocaust. He attempts to discredit Saint Paul not only by questioning scriptures attributed to him, but also Church Theologians and quoting scriptures such as when the Devil was trying to tempt Jesus after He spent forty days in the desert:  “Whether Paul was responsible for all this anti-Jewish writing is far less important than the use Christian theologians from the late empire to the twentieth century made of this material as an ideological paradigm and an emotional attack of Jews…”  (Robert Michael, 2008, A History of Catholic Antisemitism, p.12) “have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me." (Romans 11:3)  Throughout “Paul’s epistles, both attributed to him and those considered written by others, “the Jews” are described in negative terms. Asked by one of his converts about the demand that males undergo circumcision according to Jewish tradition Paul explodes,   “I wish that the ones who are upsetting you would castrate themselves!” (Galatians 5:12) An inheritance of Western history and culture it would find expression in the twentieth century as the Holocaust, the Final Solution to the Jewish Problem. It was Paul who introduced the charge, Augustine who justified eternal punishment for the Christ-killers” who,  “killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets...They displease God and are hostile to everyone…The wrath of God has come upon them at last.”  Dr. Eisenman emphasizes that nowhere, at least not in Jewish scripture, are Jews accused of having murdered their prophets”

Brings up a question, why is it the Jewish scriptures do not mentioned who killed the Jewish prophets?  Did they all die a natural death? Thomas Reid in 1786 on “Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man” wrote: “In every chain of reasoning, the evidence of the last conclusion can be no greater than that of the weakest link of the chain, whatever may be the strength of the rest.” Or what about Occam's razor (sometimes written as Ockham's razor)? All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness;  (2 Timothy 3:16) – Turners premise reads more like Hickam's dictum

Turner's premise is diametrical opposed to what the Universal Church Teaches: Jews are not collectively responsible for Jesus' death But All sinners were the authors of Christ's Passion. "Jesus was handed over according to the definite plan of God" God takes the initiative of universal redeeming love

Friday, December 23, 2022

For the Birds Episode 8: The Christmas Grand ParaKids

In the last episode I praised Sunny Jewel for being hospitable as she welcomed Marshmallow: "Congratulations to Sunny Jewel for being such a hospitable roommate that Marshmallow Cream seems more comfortable in her forever home. Sunny not only allowed Mallow to use her favorite perch, but also Mallow took over the pine bark mining operation." A few days later, we could tell that Mallow was born to be free. In what seemed lie a Mission Impossible scene, a little more than one year ago, Mallow flew like a dart and got out of the cage through a small crack as I was cleaning the cage- and flew ways never to be seen - A few weeks later we welcomed Ocean Coral. Sunny Jewel is very strong, aggressive and seems to get upset easily, Sunny on the other hand is gentle, chirps a lot, is more trusting than Jewel and as it turns out is a male. 


Gentle Ocean Coral


Professionals tells us that "the incubation period time can vary from 17 to 20 days by the parakeets. They incubate their eggs for at least 17 days to help the hatchlings properly grow within the time period inside. The days may vary, but it doesn’t change anything on the health of the hatchlings.'  We have watched how Sunny laid several eggs, then discarded the:  From dropping them on the floor of the cage, to the water bowl. 





While the eggs were obviously not fertilized, we did not know if the hanging- warming nest first added was doing the job.  We tried switching to a floor-based nest  and the same thing happened.  We finally added a longer nest and things didnt change - until about four months ago.  We noticed Sunny spending more time in the nest. More than 21 days passed and Sunny spent spent most of her time inside the nest, but nothing else.





Then something happened
Something was going on.  Ocean would spend most of his time by himself, but would also feed Sunny as she stayed in the nest. Sunny would be cooped up for days and rarely would go out of the nest.  If someone approached the cage, she would immediately go back.  Ocean would also take turns keeping guard outside the cage.  Both Sunny and Ocean are teaching us valuable lessons:   1) Life is valuable - they defend it with their own life whether born or unborn  2)  To care for the children, born and unborn is a team effort - it takes both a father and a mother.  3)  Caring for the born and unborn is a 24 X 7 job - there is not "me time" - with Sunny cooped up in a cage for days must be extremely hard on her body as she is unable to move, but she does not seem to complain. Whereas Ocean tells us when it is time to put the kids to bed - we have blankets over the cage and they like to call it a day after 9:00 pm




We have decided not to interfere with the incubation pprocess but Sunny and Ocean have shown to be very responsible parents.  We do not know how many eggs were laid, how many are fertilized, but we hear baby chicks chirping.  A clear sign that we have Christmas GrandParaKids -

We are looking forward to seeing the granparkids running around the cage!
















Thursday, December 22, 2022

Two Christian brothers have been sentenced to death in Pakistan for their faith.

Time Is Running Out To Save Brothers From Execution


Two Christian brothers have been sentenced to death in Pakistan for their faith.

Amoon and Qaisar Ayub were falsely accused of “blasphemy” – framed for supposedly posting disparaging comments against the Prophet Muhammad online.

.

The insidious abuse of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws to persecute Christians is rampant in Pakistan. There was no evidence that the brothers did anything they were accused of doing. Yet their conviction and execution sentence have been upheld in court.

Now these two Christian brothers will hang for their Christian faith. This is the ultimate vile human rights 

The ACLJ  IS mobilizing it's international affiliate – the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ) – and its partner in Pakistan to appeal directly to Pakistan’s Supreme Court to have this miscarriage of justice overturned. No one should be put to death for their faith. Time is of the essence. The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) is a politically conservative, Christian-based social activism organization in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and associated with Regent University School of Law in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

You can take urgent action with the ACLJ:  Have your donation in defense of persecuted Christians DOUBLED through our Matching Challenge.

A Tax-Deductible gift today will be matched, dollar for dollar, by a group of ACLJ Members. Every $10 gift becomes $20 for the work of the ACLJ

Wednesday, December 21, 2022

Honeywell UOP to Gets Slap On Wrist to Resolve Multimillion Bribery In U.S. and Brazil: Tip of Corporate Greed Pyramid

UOP LLC, doing business as Honeywell UOP, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., has agreed to pay more than $160 million to resolve parallel bribery investigations by criminal and civil authorities in the United States and Brazil stemming from bribe payments offered to a high-ranking official at Brazil’s state-owned oil company.

 



According to court documents, between 2010 and 2014, Honeywell UOP conspired to offer an approximately $4 million bribe to a then-high-ranking executive of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A (Petrobras) in Brazil. Specifically, Honeywell UOP offered the bribe to secure improper advantages in order to obtain and retain business from Petrobras in connection with Honeywell UOP’s efforts to win an approximately $425 million contract from Petrobras to design and build an oil refinery called Premium.

In order to effectuate the bribery scheme, Honeywell UOP entered into an agency agreement with a sales agent for the purpose of funding and paying the $4 million bribe to the high-ranking Petrobras executive. In exchange for the bribe, and after obtaining business advantages, including inside information and secret assistance, from the Petrobras executive, Honeywell UOP won the contract. Honeywell UOP earned approximately $105.5 million in profits from the corruptly obtained business.


Honeywell UOP will pay a criminal penalty of approximately $79 million. The department has agreed to credit up to approximately $39.6 million of that criminal penalty against amounts the company has agreed to pay to authorities in Brazil in connection with related proceedings to resolve an investigation by the Controladoria-Geral da União (CGU), the Ministério Público Federal (MPF), and the Advocacia-Geral de União (Attorney General’s Office). In addition, Honeywell UOP will pay approximately $81 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest as part of the resolution of a parallel investigation by the SEC.


“Money is the center of the criminal world, and this company became a part of that world when it failed to adhere to national and international laws,” said Special Agent in Charge Ramsey E. Covington of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) Houston Field Office - While SACI Covington is right, as long as corporations get a simple slap on the wrist, this type of conduct will continue


Tuesday, December 20, 2022

Nelson & McCarthy Indicted in Scheme that Took Over Ring Doorbells to Livestream Police Response to Fake Calls


LOS ANGELES – Two men – one from Wisconsin, the other from North Carolina, were charged with participating in a “swatting” spree that, over a one-week span, gained access to a dozen Ring home security door cameras nationwide, placed bogus emergency phone calls designed to elicit an armed police response, then livestreamed the events on social media, sometimes while taunting responding police officers, the Justice Department announced yesterday
Kya Christian Nelson, a.k.a. “ChumLul,” 21, of Racine, Wisconsin, who is currently incarcerated in Kentucky in an unrelated case; and James Thomas Andrew McCarty, a.k.a. “Aspertaine,” 20, of Charlotte, North Carolina (who at the time of the alleged criminal conduct lived in Kayenta, Arizona), who was arrested last week on federal charges filed in the District of Arizona, are charged with ontentionally accessing without authorization a computer and of aggravated identity theft



According to the indictment returned Friday afternoon by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles, from November 7, 2020, to November 13, 2020, Nelson and McCarty gained access to home security door cameras sold by Ring LLC, a home security technology company. Nelson and McCarty allegedly acquired without authorization the username and password information for Yahoo email accounts belonging to victims throughout the United States

.

  They subsequently determined whether the owner of each compromised Yahoo account also had a Ring account using the same email address and password that could control associated internet-connected Ring doorbell camera devices. Using that information, they identified and gathered additional information about their victims, according to the indictment.

Nelson and McCarty allegedly placed false emergency reports or telephone calls to local law enforcement in the areas where the victims lived. These reports or calls were intended to elicit an emergency police response to the victim’s residence, the indictment alleges.

  The defendants accessed without authorization the victims’ Ring devices and transmitted the audio and video from those devices on social media during the police response. They also  verbally taunted responding police officers and victims through the Ring devices during several of the incidents.

 On November 8, 2020, Nelson and an accomplice accessed without authorization Yahoo and Ring accounts belonging to a victim in West Covina. A hoax telephone call was placed to the West Covina Police Department purporting to originate from the victim’s residence and posing as a minor child reporting her parents drinking and shooting guns inside the residence of the victim’s parents. Nelson allegedly accessed without authorization a Ring doorbell camera, located at the residence of the victim’s parents and linked to the victim’s Ring account, and used it to verbally threaten and taunt West Covina Police officers who responded to the reported incident.

    The indictment alleges other similar Ring-related swatting incidents occurred in Flat Rock, Michigan; Redding, California; Billings, Montana; Decatur, Georgia; Chesapeake, Virginia; Rosenberg, Texas; Oxnard, California; Darien, Illinois; Huntsville, Alabama; North Port, Florida; and Katy, Texas.

          This series of swatting incidents prompted the FBI in late 2020 to issue a public service announcement urging users of smart home devices with cameras and voice capabilities to use complex, unique passwords and enable two-factor authentication to help protect against swatting attack

        

The Allegorical Twelve Days of Christmas





“On the first day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree.”

We all know the song.  But what are the “Twelve Days of Christmas”  on the calendar?

The Twelve Days are a very old celebration of Christmas. They are far older than the song cited above, which was first written in Elizabethan England. The Twelve days cover the gap between Christmas Day and Epiphany


       “On the first day of Christmas

My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree.”

We all know the song. It’s quite long. Our eyes usually glaze over before it wraps up with the “partridge in a pear tree.”

What are the “Twelve Days of Christmas” anyway? Where are they on the calendar?

The Twelve Days are a very old celebration of Christmas. They are far older than the song cited above, which was first written in Elizabethan England. The Twelve days cover the gap between Christmas Day and Epiphany.

A 15th-century illuminated manuscript showing the Adoration of the Magi

Many people think that the “Twelve Days of Christmas” are the days leading up to Christmas, with Christmas being the twelfth day and grand finale. Christmas, however, is the beginning of the twelve day celebration, which continues through the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6th.


"The Twelve Days of Christmas" Song is a classic  allegorical Christmas carol,, where the lyrics detail a series of increasingly numerous gifts given on each of the twelve days of Christmas, the twelve days that make up the Christmas season, starting with Christmas Day.  Lyrics appear  below:





The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus Christ. 

 Two turtle doves are the Old and New Testaments. 

Three French hens stand for faith, hope, and love. 

The four calling birds are the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. 

The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament. 

The six geese a-laying stand for the six days of creation. 

Seven swans a-swimming represent the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy. 

The eight maids a-milking are the eight Beatitudes. Nine ladies dancing are the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control. 

The ten lords a-leaping are the Ten Commandments. 

The eleven pipers piping stand for the eleven faithful disciples. 

The twelve drummers drumming symbolize the twelve tribes of Israel. - source of allegory anon.



The Nativity Scene 



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On the first day of Christmas, my true love sent to meA partridge in a pear tree
On the second day of Christmas, my true love sent to meTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the third day of Christmas, my true love sent to meThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meFour calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love sent to meSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meEight maids a-milkingSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meNine ladies dancingEight maids a-milkingSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meTen lords a-leapingNine ladies dancingEight maids a-milkingSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love sent to meI sent eleven pipers pipingTen lords a-leapingNine ladies dancingEight maids a-milkingSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love sent to meTwelve drummers drummingEleven pipers pipingTen lords a-leapingNine ladies dancingEight maids a-milkingSeven swans a-swimmingSix geese a-layingFive gold rings (five golden rings)Four calling birdsThree French hensTwo turtledovesAnd a partridge in a pear tree
And a partridge in a pear tree

Composer: Federic Sustin