How Long is the Christmas Season?
Adoration of the Shepherds
Question: I understand that the Christmas season starts on December 25, the feast of the Nativity, but I have heard different versions as to when it actually ends. Some say January 5, the feast of the Epiphany, and others give later dates? What is the correct length of the Christmas season?
Answer: The exact length of the Christmas season is largely in the eye of the beholder, though the Church has its liturgical rules on the subject.
In the Western world, Christmas, or the feast of the Nativity of the Lord, is celebrated on December 25 (those who begin their celebrations on Christmas Eve are entitled to do so, since the liturgical day begins at sundown).
It can be argued that the Christmas season is eight days long, since the Church regards Christmas an octave, thus ending on January 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
Others suggest that the Christmas season is 12 days long. The carol “Twelve Days of Christmas” counts down those days by listing daily gifts. At the end of the dozen days is the feast of the Epiphany on January 5. The feast commemorates the visit of the gift-bearing Magi to the Holy Family, and the revelation to them that Jesus was the Son of God.
Others hold that the Christmas season continues until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which typically falls on the Sunday after the Epiphany.
In the liturgical calendar, our proper guide to the Church’s year, the Christmas season ends with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord — so this Christmas season, that will be on January 12 — after which ordinary time begins and clergy resume wearing their green vestments.
So when precisely do you take down your Christmas tree? That is your decision to make, based on your own traditions and practical considerations.
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