What Are the 12 Days of Christmas?
The 12 days of Christmas signifies the time between the celebration of the birth of Christ on Christmas (December 25) and the celebration of the arrival of the three wise men, also known as the magi, called Epiphany or Three Kings’ Day (January 6), according to the traditional church calendar.
The High Cost of Giving That Many Gifts
Since 1984, PNC Bank has been tracking the price of giving each gift mentioned in the song with the PNC Christmas Price Index. The index uses current market rates to calculate how much each gift would cost, on average, for the modern consumer. Giving someone every gift mentioned in the song (and multiplied over the 12 days) would cost you—$201,972.66.4 If you wanted to just get one of the 12 items as a gift, even that could set you back $45,523.27.5 Coincidentally, the total number of gifts mentioned in the song comes out to 364, so a person could buy one gift every day for almost exactly a year.
Luke 2
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.
6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
The Shepherds and Angels
8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, 14
“Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Jesus Is Presented in the Temple
21 Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived. 22 Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. 23 The law of the Lord says, “If a woman’s first child is a boy, he must be dedicated to the Lord.” 24 So they offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord—“either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
Was Jesus Poor?
Lu 9:58 And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
Mt 13:55 Is <esti> not <ou> this <houtos> the carpenter’s <tekton> son <huios>?
When God wants to take charge of the world, he doesn’t send in the tanks. He sends in the poor and the meek. – N. T. Wright