THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS John Denver and the Muppets

Another classic christmas song.

Twelve Days of Christmas?

From the website - How Stuff Works, here is one theory on the 12 days of Christmas. See if you could name all the biblical items mentioned in the list.

One theory, however, connects the carol to the era when Catholicism was outlawed in England, from 1558 and 1829. The carol, it is said, was a catechism song for Catholics to learn "the tenets of their faith," as they could not openly practice in Anglican society [source: Snopes.com]. While many still hold the idea of a coded hymn to be true, there's no substantive evidence that this was the case, nor is there any evidence that the verses contain anything uniquely Catholic.

Here are the verses of the song, along with their supposed symbolism:

A Partridge in a Pear Tree - Jesus Christ
Two Turtle Doves - The Old and New Testaments
Three French Hens - The three virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity
Four Calling/Collie Birds - Four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
Five Golden Rings - First five books of the Old Testament
Six Geese-a-Laying - Six days of creation before God's rest on the seventh day
Seven Swans-a-Swimming - Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit
Eight Maids-a-Milking - Eight Beatitudes
Nine Ladies Dancing - Nine fruits of the Holy Spirit
Ten Lords-a-Leaping - Ten Commandments
Eleven Pipers Piping - Eleven faithful disciples
Twelve Drummers Drumming -Twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed
[Source: BBC.com]

While these verses are what most of us associate with the "Twelve Days of Christmas," the phrase refers to an actual 12-day period. The 12 days of Christmas, in fact, are the days from Dec. 25, celebrated as the birth of Jesus Christ, to the Epiphany, celebrated on Jan. 6 as the day when the manifestation of Christ's glory was realized.

Twelve Days of Christmas Videos

Since yesterday was December 13 (only 12 more days until Christmas), I decided to post a Christmas video a day from YouTube. I discovered that it has some of my favorite Christmas video moments. Enjoy.

Straight No Chaser - 12 Days

I very good mix up of christmas songs by an a cappella men's group.

Ice Storm

Home today because we had a mini-ice storm. Not super bad, but enough for the schools to get out early. Here are some pictures of my car and a tree at my house.

Leadership?

I have been intrigued by the Bobby Petrino decision to leave the NFL for college again. I wanted to blog about my concern that he is a leadership role-model for all the players on his team, yet he has lied repeatedly to his bosses. Well, someone else beat me to the article. Pat Forde at ESPN has summarised my thoughts exactly. Here is a quote:

Bobby Petrino will return your embrace, Hog fans. But while he's hugging you he'll be looking over your shoulder, scanning the terrain for his next hook-up.

Even in a profession rife with dishonest posturing, Petrino is singularly mercenary. Loyalty, allegiance, commitment and honesty are foreign concepts to him. It must be a sad existence.

I apologize to Alabama's Nick Saban -- last year I named him president of the Liar's Club. He's been impeached and replaced by the disingenuous drifter.

Click here for the rest of the article.

Deadly Viper Club

Be a part of the deadly viper club and fight the deadly vipers that try to assassinate our character. It is a new character and integrity movement. This is a teaser trailer for a small group DVD that is coming out in January.

Wintuk

This past Saturday, we were treated to the Cirque Du Soleil show, "Wintuk" in New York City at Madison Square Garden. It was amazing. I am in awe of the ability of the performers. I really enjoyed the tightrope walker, juggler and stunt bikes. Then we attempted to go shopping at Macy's. Here are some pictures.



Notice how crowed the streets are...that is the back of Dena's head. She is in the light pink jacket with my phone shadow on her back.

November

Wow, what a November! Here is a brief summary of my last month. It started with my wife’s grandmother passing away on Nov.7. Then on Nov. 8, my senior pastor received a kidney transplant and went on medical leave for two months. Two weeks flew by with funeral activities and visits to the hospital. I also preached on November 18. I may post my outline of the sermon.

Everything finally slowed down and we took a week vacation. The trip included New York City for the Radio City Music Hall 75th Anniversary show starring the Rockettes, visiting my brother and being part of the 3 million people to line the streets of New York to watch the Thanksgiving Day parade. After all that fun, we spent the next few days in Lancaster with my wife’s family. Here are some pictures.






Last weekend, I was on retreat with our senior high teens. We joined with two other churches for a great weekend of fun and faith. I will post pictures on our groups Facebook page.

So now, I am finally caught up and back to focusing on my dissertation. I lost a whole month, but with God’s help, I can still reach my goal of graduation next year.