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When Does Christmas End?


oremus1

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Is it correct that 24th dec - 6th Jan is traditionally Christmastide

up to the octave of the epiphany is liturgically the season of christmas

up to candlemas is spiritually the season of christmas?

 

what christmas things are you doing now?

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There are a few answers here.  In the current liturgical calendar, Christmas Time lasts until the Sunday after the feast of the Epiphany.  Technically, after that it is liturgically ordinary time in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

 

In the Extraordinary Form, that Ordinary Time is referred to as Time After Epiphany, and up until February 2, Candlemas, the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord, it is closely associated with the Christmas season.  It is a deeply rooted and ancient tradition to consider it the Christmas season all the way until Candlemas, and it certainly makes sense to celebrate the Feast of Our Lord's birth up until the Feast of His Presentation in the Temple as an infant.  Nothing stops one from doing so, and indeed the Christmas Trees in the Vatican stay up well into what is "Ordinary Time"... I don't know if they last until February 2 but I hope they do!  people are far too eager to end Christmas, because they start celebrating it at Thanksgiving and don't even bother to build anticipation for it through advent, so personally I think keeping the Christmas season until February 2 is a great witness to an observance of the Christmas holidays religiously.

 

Personally I consider Epiphany, January 6th, the end of Christmas itself (the 12 days), and Candlemas, February 2, as the end of the broader Christmas and Epiphany season.

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I take all my Christmas decorations and tree down immediately after The Baptism of The Lord when Ordinary Time begins.  This year Ordinary Time began on Monday13th. January and I dismantled and packed away all decorations.

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There are a few answers here.  In the current liturgical calendar, Christmas Time lasts until the Sunday after the feast of the Epiphany.  Technically, after that it is liturgically ordinary time in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

 

In the Extraordinary Form, that Ordinary Time is referred to as Time After Epiphany, and up until February 2, Candlemas, the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord, it is closely associated with the Christmas season.  It is a deeply rooted and ancient tradition to consider it the Christmas season all the way until Candlemas, and it certainly makes sense to celebrate the Feast of Our Lord's birth up until the Feast of His Presentation in the Temple as an infant.  Nothing stops one from doing so, and indeed the Christmas Trees in the Vatican stay up well into what is "Ordinary Time"... I don't know if they last until February 2 but I hope they do!  people are far too eager to end Christmas, because they start celebrating it at Thanksgiving and don't even bother to build anticipation for it through advent, so personally I think keeping the Christmas season until February 2 is a great witness to an observance of the Christmas holidays religiously.

 

Personally I consider Epiphany, January 6th, the end of Christmas itself (the 12 days), and Candlemas, February 2, as the end of the broader Christmas and Epiphany season.

 

i went to a Polish Ordinary Form church and saw everything is still up, even the crib and christmas tree with lights. is this normal?

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i went to a Polish Ordinary Form church and saw everything is still up, even the crib and christmas tree with lights. is this normal?

 

There could be a million reasons for this.  It could be tradition, as I know some of my more ethnic neighbors as a kid kept decorations up until Feb 2.  It could be that it's been insanely cold and they can't safely remove things.  It could be that they don't have the manpower or that the caretaker is sick.

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it is quite normal to keep it all up until Feb. 2, and indeed the Vatican itself does so to the best of my knowledge... I know it keeps it up past the date of the Epiphany, at least.

 

I keep mine up until Feb. 2 and always encourage others to do the same.

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