SpinnerBait_Nut
Honorary Moderator Emeritus
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2002
- Messages
- 17,651
You all ever wonder where they come up with that Christmas Carol?<br />Pay close attention and I will tell you.<br /><br /> What in the world do leaping<br />lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't<br />come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas? <br /><br />Today, I found out.<br /><br />From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. <br /><br />Someone during that era wrote this carol as a<br />catechism song for young Catholics. <br /><br />It has two levels of meaning: the<br />surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church.<br /><br />Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality, which the<br />children could remember.<br /><br />The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.<br /><br />Two turtledoves were the Old and New Testaments<br /><br />Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.<br /><br />The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.<br /><br />The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.<br /><br />The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.<br /><br />Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit:<br />Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.<br /><br />The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.<br /><br />Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit: Love, Joy,<br />Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.<br /><br />The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments.<br /><br />The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.<br /><br />The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in The Apostles' Creed. <br /><br />So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol 
