Epiphany

[Wills]

Tomorrow* is Epiphany - 6th January. My AV now show's the traditional Portuguese Bolo Rei - Epiphany Cake or Cake of King's. (Made by my own fair hand!)

For some strange reason when ever I hear the word Epiphany I am reminded of the 'camp' British actor - Kenneth Williams of the "Carry On" series of films who uttered the imortal line, when playing Julias Cesear, "Infamy, Infamy - they've all got it in for me."

What does Epiphany mean to you?

Will's

*Actually it's today now.

 

[shereads]

I don't know, but you look delicious. A piece of you would be perfect with coffee right now.

I'm going to brew a fresh pot. Don't go away...

 

[Lauren Hynde]

I'm not the greatest Bolo Rei fan in the world, but I'd take a bite.

 

[Guest]

What does Epiphany mean to you?

Will's

To me it means the day the Chritsmas decorations have to come down.

It's also the day we remember the Magi presenting baby Jesus with his gifts. It's a day for being thankful, for all the gifts of life.

Lou

 

[TheEarl]

For some strange reason when ever I hear the word Epiphany I am reminded of the 'camp' British actor - Kenneth Williams of the "Carry On" series of films who uttered the imortal line, when playing Julias Cesear, "Infamy, Infamy - they've all got it in for me."

What does Epiphany mean to you?

Will's

And now you've said that, all I can think of is the Eddie Izzard line - "Blasphemy, Blas-for-yooouuu. Blas-for-everybody-in-the room!"

The Earl

 

[snooper]

Re: Re: Epiphany

It's also the day we remember the Magi presenting baby Jesus with his gifts. It's a day for being thankful, for all the gifts of life.

I am continually surprised that the millennia old con trick of the priest (of any religion) still works today.
Basically the line he (and occasionally she) uses is "Keep me in comparative luxury now, and you'll have a better life after you are dead."

And people still believe it!!!

 

[Svenskaflicka]

Not to be a critic... I mean, it could be my computer screen... but is the pic taken before or after you eat the cake?

Svenskaflicka
Anti-religious

 

[Guest]

Re: Re: Re: Epiphany

I am continually surprised that the millennia old con trick of the priest (of any religion) still works today.
Basically the line he (and occasionally she) uses is "Keep me in comparative luxury now, and you'll have a better life after you are dead."

And people still believe it!!!

Huh?

I wasn't talking material gifts of life, btw.

Lou (whose 7 year old daughter taught her the exact meaning of Epiphany. Oh, the shame! )

 

[Guest]

¡Ya Vienen Los Reyes Magos!

In Mexico, Epiphany is called El Día del Reyes. I fear much has changed since I was in Mexico as a child, or kept La Navidad with my family in childhood (Santa and consumerism have made their capitalistic inroads). But I’ll speak of it as if everything were still the same.

The day commemorates the visit of the magi and is when children receive the majority of their gifts (rather than Christmas). On the night of January 5 the figures of the 3 wise men are added to the crèche. At bedtime children place their old shoes under their bed where the magi will leave them their presents. People in rural areas place hay and a bucket with water for the animals outside.

A special pan dulce (sweet bread) is baked to be eaten on January 6. A small doll which represents the Christ child is baked into the dough (the figure symbolizes the hiding of the child from Herod's army). Whoever finds the figure in their slice of sweet bread must give a party on February 2, Candlemas Day, or Día de la Candelaria, offering tamales and atole (a hot, sweet drink thickened with corn flour) to the guests.

On the 6th adults prepare for the Merienda de Reyes, an early evening dinner with friends and families to finish celebrating the Epiphany. (February 2 is when the nativity scene is put away, and another family dinner of tamales and hot chocolate is served.)

Perdita

 

[sirhugs]

Re: ¡Ya Vienen Los Reyes Magos!

In Mexico, Epiphany is called El Día del Reyes. I fear much has changed since I was in Mexico as a child, or kept La Navidad with my family in childhood (Santa and consumerism have made their capitalistic inroads). But I’ll speak of it as if everything were still the same.

The day commemorates the visit of the magi and is when children receive the majority of their gifts (rather than Christmas). On the night of January 5 the figures of the 3 wise men are added to the crèche. At bedtime children place their old shoes under their bed where the magi will leave them their presents. People in rural areas place hay and a bucket with water for the animals outside.

A special pan dulce (sweet bread) is baked to be eaten on January 6. A small doll which represents the Christ child is baked into the dough (the figure symbolizes the hiding of the child from Herod's army). Whoever finds the figure in their slice of sweet bread must give a party on February 2, Candlemas Day, or Día de la Candelaria, offering tamales and atole (a hot, sweet drink thickened with corn flour) to the guests.

On the 6th adults prepare for the Merienda de Reyes, an early evening dinner with friends and families to finish celebrating the Epiphany. (February 2 is when the nativity scene is put away, and another family dinner of tamales and hot chocolate is served.)

Perdita

I'll be over for dinner on the 2nd!

 

[Guest]

You'd be very welcome, Hugs. Happy 2004!

Perdita

 

[Guest]

I knew Jan. 6 was also called 12th Night in England so looked it up for more details. From Shakespeare studies I also knew the 12 days of Christmas, per the church calendar, was a "time out of time" when much of ordinary became inverted, e.g., in the Boy Bishop's Mass the bishops and priests took the serving roles and lower-class young boys dressed as the hierarchy.

Twelfth Night

 

[OldnotDead]

Re: ¡Ya Vienen Los Reyes Magos!

In Mexico, Epiphany is called El Día del Reyes. I fear much has changed since I was in Mexico as a child, or kept La Navidad with my family in childhood (Santa and consumerism have made their capitalistic inroads). . . .

On the 6th adults prepare for the Merienda de Reyes, an early evening dinner with friends and families to finish celebrating the Epiphany. (February 2 is when the nativity scene is put away, and another family dinner of tamales and hot chocolate is served.)

Perdita

Hello, again,

What a pleasant thread to find near the top on my revisit to AH!! Thanks, Wills.

with mostly DAR type WASP antecedents, I have little cultural ties to such wonderful traditions as Perdita. But as the son of an Anglo Priest, I have very strong ties to celebrating all 12 days of Christmas and maintaining the nativity through the Feast of the Epiphany.

In the town we grew up in, they collected all the Christmas Trees that were left on the curbs and in one of the large parks, had a Twelth Night bon fire that was not to be believed. In high school, my choral group always sang at it. I haven't checked, but I assume by now town taxes no longer are used for such a religious event. Too bad, it was fun.

But our tree was never part of the bonfire. It was always lit through Epiphany and had a less glorious end in the town chipper.

My Christmas lights are always the last in the neighborhood to go dark. We mourn the day we have to start packing up the 20 or so boxes of decorations. No one is in a hurry here to take down the tree and this year's is particularly good, so I won't be pushing any of them either.

All of my kids have switched to Spanish as their foreign language, so I will make them research Candlemas, February 2nd, Perdita, and use it as an excuse to at least keep out our nativity sets. We have a beautiful porcelain one made by a friend of my father's and another inexpensive one that we bought when our kids were little so they would have one to play with. I love the hand made one, but it's the chipped and broken-and-reglued-one that has the best memories of our kids learning about Christmas.

I'll bore you with one short story. Oldest son comes to me in tears with a broken in half Joseph. Apparently he was 'repairing the stable', "he is a carpenter, you know" and he hammered a little too hard and broke in half. Crazy glue is good stuff - he was hammering again by nightfall, just not as hard.

To this day, Baby Jesus, lives on the roof until late Christmas Eve when he gets put in the stable. This one is kept by the fireplace so Santa can pray at it when he visits.

The year my daughter was born on the 4th was the year we set the record for the 'oldest decorated tree'. I took it down in time for her Christening party <G>

And, of course, to answer your question Wills, that is now what Epiphany most means to me. It's the time of year that we got a gift of a daughter, the best kind of present.

 

[Wills]

Many thanks for the contribution's - even 'Flika's!'

I confess Epiphany passed me by until I married into Catholic family, I guess with the passing years a degree of reflection is brought to bear upon the reason and the why of things.

Perdita's Feb 2nd Dinner sounds a must and so much more civilised than the Portuguese version. Here we hide a small trinket in the cake - tradionally silver - these days more likely plastic and from China, and a dried broad bean. Tradition has it that the receiver of the trinket is the Queen to the three King's for the day - usually means they miss out on having to do the washing up. The receiver of the broad bean has to buy the cake next year.

OnD's tribute to his daughter is a blessing, somehow we managed to convince ourselves that our daughter had been conceived around the time of Epiphany but a mid November birth laid that theory to rest!

Happy Epiphany to one and all.

Will's

PS Svenskaflicka, you have much to teach in the art of reducing complex photographic compositions into something that can be posted without it looking as if I have just thrown up.

 

[Wills]

Bumped for MG's edification

 

[Guest]

Re: ¡Ya Vienen Los Reyes Magos!

A special pan dulce (sweet bread) is baked to be eaten on January 6. A small doll which represents the Christ child is baked into the dough (the figure symbolizes the hiding of the child from Herod's army). Whoever finds the figure in their slice of sweet bread must give a party on February 2, Candlemas Day, or Día de la Candelaria.

On the 6th adults prepare for the Merienda de Reyes, an early evening dinner with friends and families to finish celebrating the Epiphany.

So who's dropping by? The cake is ready and I have Champagne (real) and hot tamales.

Perdita

 

[Svenskaflicka]

I like your new AV, Wills...

 

[Wills]

Thank you Svenskaflicka,

It is the coast line at Arrabida about twenty minutes drive from home, taken on New Years Day.

Will's

 

[deliciously_naughty]

Epiphany makes me think of the word my friend and I invented...epiphenet...which means a realization that while accurate and interesting is not quite an epiphany.

 

[Svenskaflicka]

"Hey, nice rosary! Where did you get it?"

"At Epiphany & Co."