Join us
this Sunday, January 3, 2015
as we celebrate the baptism of
PARKER RAY BROTEN
11:00 am Holy Eucharist
We will once again have a traditional
“Blessing of the Chalk”
“Blessing of the homes of the parish”
“Proclaim the Date of Easter”
Following the service, we will “de-green”
the church (though we will keep the nativity set up until after January 6)
Blessing of
Chalk/Blessing of the Homes of the Parish
Since the Middle Ages there has been
a tradition that on (or near) the feast of the Epiphany we pray for God’s
blessing on our homes, marking the entrance with chalk (an incarnational image
reminding us of the dust of the earth from which we were made). We mark the
main door of our home with the initials of the Magi and the numerals of the new
year, connected with crosses:
20 + C + M + B + 16
The initials remind us of the
legendary names of the Magi – Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar – and also stand
for the Latin motto: Christus
mansionem benedicat, “May Christ bless this house.” In the Book of
Exodus, the Israelites marked their doors with blood so that the Lord would
pass over their homes; but in this ritual, we mark our doors with chalk as a
sign that we have invited God’s presence and blessing into our homes.
It is traditional to write the
inscription on the lintel, above the door, but it can be written anywhere near
the entrance. The following prayer may be said while the entrance is marked:
The three Wise Men,
C Caspar,
M Melchior,
B and Balthasar followed the star of
God’s Son who became human
20 two thousand
16 and sixteen years ago.
++ May Christ bless our home
++ and remain with us throughout the
new year. Amen.
The
Proclamation of the Date of Easter
The Proclamation of the Date of
Easter on Epiphany dates from a time when calendars were not readily available.
It was necessary to make known the date of Easter in advance, since many
celebrations of the liturgical year depend on its date. The number of Sundays
that follow Epiphany, the date of Ash Wednesday, and the number of Sundays that
follow Pentecost are all computed in relation to Easter.
