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Twelfth Night & Decorations

Don’t you know it is bad luck to be superstitious? I thank my lucky stars I’m not superstitious!

Long ago it was thought that leaving the decorations up after the Twelfth Night of Christmas would cause a disaster. People believed that tree-spirits lived in the greenery (holy, ivy etc) they decorated their houses with. The greenery was brought into the house to provide a safe haven for the tree-spirits during the harsh midwinter days. Once this period was over it was necessary to return the greenery back outside to release the tree-spirits into the countryside once again. Failure to do this would mean that vegetation would not be able to start growing again (spring would not return), leading to an agricultural disaster. 

It was also thought that, if you left the greenery in the house, the tree-spirits would cause mischief in the house until they were released.  Today people still feel uneasy about leaving the Christmas decorations up after Twelfth Night. Despite decorations now being made of foil or paper, and even though the tree-spirits are long forgotten, the superstition still survives.

Superstition is a funny thing in some ways and a very dangerous thing in others. I’ve known many people who have had some very weird superstitions and I’ve also known some people whose lives have been made a complete disaster by theirs.

Superstitions are one of the many things that can trap us and enslave us in this life if we are not careful. We all like to think we are in control of our lives and a silly thing like a superstition can’t possibly stop us living full lives.

We have just celebrated the birth of Jesus who came to bring freedom to humanity and when we talk about his times we like to think we are so much more advanced and sophisticated, but are we? We are still besotted about horoscopes and superstitions. We believe in angels but not in Jesus Christ. It is Jesus who gives us the freedom to be who we were meant to be, it is not him that enslaves us; it is the other things in life that tie us in knots. This New Year make one resolution to trust in Jesus the only true route to peace. Myself and my family wish you a very peaceful and healthy New Year in 2011.

(By the way if you haven’t taken down your decorations by 12^th Night, they are supposed to stay up for the rest of the year)!

Every Christmas & New Year blessing Rob, the Rector.

Registers

Baptisms:

12^th Dec          Bressingham              Jake Taylor

12^th Dec          Bressingham              Woody Taylor

Weddings: None

Funerals:

1^st Dec             Diss Cemetery            Kathleen Saunders (interment)

3^rd Dec            W. Suffolk Crem       Doreen Revell

7^th Dec                        Bressingham              James Debock

8^th Dec                        Roydon                       Brian Spurway

9^th Dec                        W. Suffolk Crem       Irene Collins

9^th Dec                        Roydon                       Doris Pretty

16^th Dec          Roydon                       Amy Watkinson