(The Christmas carol The Twelves Days of Christmas covers the days between Christmas and Epiphany, i.e., the twelve days of Christmas.)
Generally, the churches I've attend throughout my life have been Christian churches that didn't really observe the liturgical calendar... nearly all Baptist, and one Wesleyan. When I was young, I was pretty oblivious to the existence of such Christian holidays. I heard about Lent ("something about giving up chocolate for a week") and how Catholics typically (at least back in the day) had fish on Fridays. I'm not sure why some denominations stopped observing those holidays... probably having to do with concerns about legalism or a perception of form becoming too important. I think though that the result is that many Christians have lost a connection to the historical richness of their religion.
This morning some members of Congress read aloud the text of the Constitution from the floor of the House to kick off the beginning of the 112th Congress. I'm glad they did, and I think they should continue doing this at the opening of each subsequent congress. They all already swear an oath to uphold it... it's good for them to have a regular reminder of what it actually says.
Charles Krauthammer, a political commentator I greatly admire, remarked yesterday about the transfer of power from the 111th to the 112th Congress:
I’m always struck — I’m a sucker for this — the quiet majesty of the transfer of power. We are a country that’s been doing it for almost a quarter of a millennium, and to see it, even though it’s not at the presidential level but at the House level, is still impressive. [link to source at NRO]I couldn't agree more.
