The Sixth Day of Christmas

On the sixth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me six geese a-laying.


The six days of creation

The Fifth Day of Christmas

On the fifth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me five golden rings.


The Pentateuch - the first five books of the Bible

The Fourth Day of Christmas

On the fourth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me four calling birds.



Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John

The Third Day of Christmas

On the third day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me three french hens.

Faith, Hope and Charity

The Second Day of Christmas

On the second day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me two turtle doves.


Synagoga and Ecclesia - the old and new covenants

The First Day of Christmas

On the first day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me, a partridge in a pear tree.

Himself, hung upon a tree

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Pious Sodality of Church Ladies!

Image:

Adoration of the Christ Child (Madonna in the Forest)

Fra Filippo Lippi

c. 1460, oil on panel

Bookish? Organized? Computer Efficient?

I received this email today from one of the most wonderful places (certainly) in the state of Minnesota and (quite possibly) on the continent:

How would you like to receive $100 in store credit at Loome Theological Booksellers every month? We are looking for bookish, organized, and computer efficient co-workers to finish cataloging our entire 30 year old inventory of books. The work entails going through our shelves, book by book, following a step by step guide to price and catalog the books for online sales. We are looking for a number of workers to come in one or two days a month (more if you're really eager) and help us complete this massive project. Your compensation would be $100 in store credit for every day you work. Help us save Western Civilization one book at a time!

If you would like to join us, please send an email expressing your interest with a short paragraph explaining why you would like to work with Loome Theological Booksellers, and your preferred work schedule. We expect to begin the work in earnest January 2011 - when our store is the coldest bookstore on earth (you are forewarned!).

Sincerely,

Christopher Hagen

Loome Theological Booksellers

If you read and have an interest in Catholicism, I'm certain you want to go here. (We always bring our out-of-state, Catholic guests.) If you read, have an interest in Catholicism, and have a little extra time, consider helping them with this massive project.

Forgotten Carols

Santa Baby and White Christmas blare in every store. Silver Bells and Let it Snow stream constantly on the radio. You feel a whiff of fresh air when you finally hear a Christmas carol - The First Noel, Silent Night, Angels We Have Heard on High.

But how often do you hear the second verse of What Child Is This?

Why lies He in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christians fear: for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.
Nail, spear shall pierce Him through,
The Cross be borne for me, for you;
Hail! Hail the Word Made Flesh,
The Babe, the Son of Mary!

Or The Holly and The Ivy?

The holly and the ivy, when they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood, the holly bears the crown.
Refrain: Oh, the rising of the sun and the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ, sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a blossom as white as lily flower,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ to be our sweet saviour
Refrain
The holly bears a berry as red as any blood,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ to do poor sinners good.
Refrain
The holly bears a prickle as sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ on Christmas Day in the morn.
Refrain
The holly bears a bark as bitter as any gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ for to redeem us all.

Many old carols, especially many originating from Medieval England have a very strong emphasis on the Passion. They recognize the sweet little babe in the manger as the Savior of Mankind - the Savior Who will be so brutally killed for our sins.

As Christmas comes, take time to discover some of these beautiful carols and be reminded of the reason Christ was born in a manger.

A new tradition for Gaudete Sunday

The desert and the parched land will exult;
the steppe will rejoice and bloom.
They will bloom with abundant flowers,
and rejoice with joyful song.

(Is 35, 1-2)

Sunday's first reading sparked a new tradition at our house. Especially amid the chill of winter, buying flowers for the dining table reminds us at every meal of the fulfillment of Isaiah's messianic prophecies in the birth of Christ.

Image source