Tag Archives: 12 days of Christmas

Forward Today: Christmastide is just starting

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Dear friends in Christ,

Happy Christmas! I hope your Christmas is off to a wonderful start. Of course, today is the second day of Christmas. If you’re going along with the famous Twelve Days of Christmas song, you’ll be thinking of two turtledoves today. We still have ten more days of Christmas festivity ahead.

I love celebrating Christmas as the world has moved on. Perhaps Valentine’s Day items will be up for sale before we finish Christmas. And that’s just fine. You see, when we celebrate Christmas for the full twelve days, one of the gifts is that there’s no peer pressure. The Muzak and the mall aren’t forcing you into faux cheer. If you’re filled with Christmas cheer today, it’s because you want to be keeping the full feast.

Keep singing Christmas carols. Today, tomorrow, and right up through January 5th. It’s wonderfully countercultural. Spend time in these coming days in the silence—which is easier to find now than in the days leading up to Christmas—giving thanks for the great depth of God’s love for us in Jesus Christ.

As for me, I’m giving thanks for refreshment. I’m starting a three-month sabbatical next week. That’s a pretty great Christmas gift! I’ll be doing some travel, some reading, some praying, and maybe a bit of writing. Over the next three months, my colleagues at Forward Movement and some of our board members will be writing these weekly reflections. I hope you’ll enjoy the variety of voices and perspectives.

Today, I am filled with gratitude for Forward Movement, for our provision of sabbatical rest, and for the gift of the wonderful Episcopal Church I am privileged to serve. I am also grateful for Christmastide and carols for days on end. Mostly, I am grateful for Jesus our Emmanuel.

Pray for me over the next three months of sabbatical, and know that I am praying for you. We all have so much for which to give thanks to God.

Yours faithfully,

Scott Gunn
Executive Director

Photo: Xavier Romero-Frias, from Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 3.0]

Today’s Flash Sale: Hour by Hour

Hour by HourPray without ceasing with this compact edition of the Daily Office complete with prayers and psalms for one week. This beautiful little book, excerpted from The Book of Common Prayer, will enable anyone to say the hours every day: Morning Prayer, Noonday Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Compline. Perfect for prayer and worship at all times and in all places. Hour by Hour is a thoughtful gift—the cover is deluxe soft leather, and it’s packaged in a small white gift box.

Regular: $20
Today: $15

*Discount is valid until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time

Shareable Christmastide Infographic

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The Twelve Days of Christmas isn’t just a song about partridges in pear trees and golden rings. For the Church, Christmas is a twelve-day season (Christmastide) from December 25th through January 5th.

Dr. Christopher Corbin, missioner for transition and leadership with the Diocese of South Dakota, has partnered with Forward Movement to offer an easy-to-share (and understand) infographic highlighting the Twelve Days of Christmas. The infographic is designed to be both shared on your social media platforms as well as printed in sizes up to 11×17 inches. Download a PDF or JPEG.

12 Days of Christmas infographic

Download the Christmastide Infographic: PDF or JPEG

If you’re interested in seeing more infographics or have ideas for topics, send us an email at rthompson@forwardmovement.org. We’d love to hear your suggestions.

Welcome to #12Days, a Daily Resource for Christmas

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Forward Movement invites you to celebrate the full season of Christmas with a gift of 12 Days. This free resource produced by Forward Movement and created by author and mom Mary Ann Frishman features daily mediations on the gift of Jesus that can help your family celebrate the 12 days of Christmas, starting December 25 and running through January 6, Epiphany.

Using the familiar framework of a beloved English Christmas carol, 12 Days shines a light on simple ways to engage faith and deepen conversations among family and friends—including thoughtful questions for discussion, optional activities, suggestions for Bible reading, and familiar songs to sing. Christmas lasts longer than we often allow ourselves to enjoy—come and stay a little while longer. The mediations will be posted each day on GrowChristians.org and can be easily shared at home, in the car, on a trip, and on your social media channels at #12Days. Come, let us adore him!