Epiphany

"Three Wise Men"

Byzantine church mosaic
Ravenna, Italy

‘A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter.’

From, Journey of the Magi
T.S Eliot

Today is Twelfth Night and the end of the 12 days of Christmas. January 5th is also the Epiphany-- a feast day which marks the visitation of the Magi. Epiphany is celebrated across Christian cultures with different rituals, some including gifts. Epiphany is a Greek word, meaning the sudden comprehension or greater meaning of something.

In Puerto Rico, children fill a box with grass and put it under their bed for the wise men's camels. They polish their shoes, and lay them out for the King's gifts as they pass by.

In New Orleans, Epiphany is the start of carnival season and King Cakes are baked. In France, people eat cake of puff pastry and almond cream.

In parts of Ireland, the day is called "Women's Christmas" or "Little Christmas" and men take on household chores while ladies go out together.

In medieval England, a cake containing a bean was eaten and the person who found it would become the "Lord of Misrule." For one night only, everything was topsy-turvy: those who were high lords became peasants, and vice versa. Shakespeare wrote a comedy called Twelfth Night, with many mistaken identities.

And how about a fruitcake throw? In Manitou Springs, Colorado they dress up in funny hats and have a competition for the farthest throw and the most creative projectile device. Just another symbolic leave-taking of the Christmas holidays. Fruitcake is the traditional Christmas bread in English-speaking countries, and of course the source of many bad jokes.


Are your Christmas decorations down? Tradition says it's unlucky to leave them hanging after today.