How many days is Christmas? When should you finally take those lights off the porch, or remove the tree? Could you read on for arguments for and against commonly agreed-upon end dates for Christmas?
Christmas is 12 days.
We’ve all heard the Christmas carol “Twelve Days of Christmas.” While it’s unclear as to why someone would give someone 23 separate birds, a pear tree, and the services of 50 people over 12 days, there actually is a liturgical precedent for claiming that Christmas is 12 days long.
Twelve days after Christmas is the Feast of the Epiphany. This day marks the Magi's encounter with Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and the gift of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, Epiphany celebrates the revelation that Jesus was the Son of God. It focuses primarily on this revelation to the Three Wise Men, but also on his baptism in the Jordan River and at the wedding at Cana. In the Eastern rites of the Catholic Church, Theophany — as Epiphany is known in the East — commemorates the manifestation of Jesus’ divinity at his Baptism in the River Jordan.
Christmas ends on Candlemas.
Candlemas, or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, is on Monday, Feb. 2. On this day, many Catholics bring candles to the church for blessing. They can then light these candles at home during prayer or difficult times as a symbol of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World.
Candlemas is the last day that the Alma Redemptoris Mater is the Marian antiphon appended to the hours of the Divine Office. The Alma Redemptoris Mater is used from the beginning of Advent through Feb. 2, and so Candlemas has come to be associated with the close of the Christmas season.