Feast of the Nativity

Fasts and Feasts

Christmastide begins with the Feast of the Nativity.
Transcript
Welcome to Fasts and Feasts, a guided tour of the church year. I'm Jared Henderson, and today I'll teach you about the Nativity of Our Lord.So far on Fasts and Feasts we've had episodes for the season of Advent and for a few saints days. Today's episode, however, is on a feast day that is not for a saint. Instead, this is the first feast in the church year is the feast of the Nativity — or, in other words, Christmas.Why am I calling it the feast of the Nativity? For one, we are celebrating the nativity of Christ; the name picks out the precise event that we are commemorating. And it's also the case that 'Christmas' is a little ambiguous.
Often we use 'Christmas' to mean a particular day, Dec 25. However, 'Christmas' can also mean a season. Remember that the church year is divided into seasons — like Advent, Lent, and so on. Christmas is a season too! The 12 Days of Christmas — like in the old songs about partridges and golden rings — actually follow Dec 25. Christmas begins with the feast of the nativity and ends 12 days later.This episode, thus, is kind of a double episode. Let's talk about the Feast of the Nativity, and then we'll talk about Christmas as a season.
What is the Feast of the Nativity?
At its core, the Feast of the Nativity is a feast that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We are all familiar with story, I imagine; many families read the early chapters of Luke where the story of Christ's birth is told. We hear how an angel visited Mary, telling her she would conceive a son. Mary responds with consent — letting it be according to God's will. There is the story of John the Baptist leaping with joy in the womb to be near Mary and Jesus as Mary visits Elizabeth during her pregnancy. There are the wonderful canticles: the Magnificat, the Benedictus, and the Nunc Dimmitis.
The Feast of the Nativity is a season of joy. All of that anticipation we felt in Advent is consummated. We now celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ — all the while remembering that Jesus Christ will come again.Sometimes the transition from Advent to Christmas can be difficult. After all, Advent is so dark. But I like a phrase Fleming Rutledge uses in one of her sermons: 'Christmas should come in a burst.' The first Christmas came in a burst as well. Mary and Joseph traveled a long, dark road. And then, on that glorious night, choirs of angels filled the skies and sang: 'Glory to God in the highest!' The Nativity came in a burst.
The Season of Christmas
I find modern celebrations of the Christmas season sad. We get so caught up in the fact that Christmas is coming, and thus that we need to prepare, that we don't give Advent its proper due. And then Christmas comes...and it fizzles. Christmas may come in a burst, but we are supposed to feel its echoes for 12 whole days. Alas, we often don't.
How can we truly celebrate? Many people have the week between Christmas and New Year off. If you do, take that time to properly rest and to enjoy your life. And give God the glory! And if you know others who don't have that time off of work, try to spread Christmas joy to them — make them a meal, buy them a coffee, wish them a merry Christmas. Keep those lights up for a few more days; don't immediately tear down the tree. And sing some carols! Make a joyful noise!
A closing collect

Alright friends, as always: let's close with a collect from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer:ALMIGHTY God, who hast given us thy only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and as at this time to be born of a pure Virgin; Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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