The 2nd Day of Christmas – Two Turtle Doves
The days between Christmas and January 6th – which is Epiphany – were known as the “12 Days of Christmas”. If you have not read the blog from yesterday, Dec. 26th, you might want to go back and take a look at the background for these days after Christmas.
Most of us know these days through the song – “The Twelve Days Of Christmas”, which begins:
On the first day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me:
A partridge in a pear tree.
On the second day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me:
Two turtle doves,
and a partridge in a pear tree.
The 2nd day of Christmas is God’s gift of the Two turtle doves. I have to admit, from early boyhood the idea of a turtle and a dove brought weird images to my mind. I wasn’t sure whether the song was saying the true love gave a turtle or a dove, but it was confusing to try to put the two together.
Why two turtledoves? What is the significance of there being two? The clerics from the 16th century were using a familiar image of scripture to teach an important facet of God’s redemption. It should be noted, there are several interpretations for the meaning of the gift of these two doves.
Some have suggested it is related to the sacrificial aspect of Jesus’ coming – the “partridge in the pear tree”. The Hebrew sacrificial system provided for the poor. Many could not afford to bring a lamb. So God made a way for them. They could bring two turtledoves in lieu of a lamb. This was the sacrifice offered by Joseph and Mary, the parents of Jesus as they went up to the feast.
Luke 2:21-24 (NASB)
21 And when eight days had passed, before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.
22 And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord
23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord "),
24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord, "A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."
The sacrifice of doves was distinctly different than the sacrifice of other animals. Sheep and bulls are offered singly and cut down the middle. Yet doves are not cut down the middle. They are offered whole and in pairs.
In the valley of the Jordan an allied species, the palm dove, or Egyptian 'Turtur Aegyptus' (turtledove) is still common today. The habit of turtle doves is that they pair for life - a poetic type and symbol of God’s covenanted love. In the story of the two turtledoves we see a picture of a love relationship.
In the Song of Songs (of Solomon) there are many allusions to the dove. Song of Songs 2:10-14 (NRSV)
10 My beloved speaks and says to me: "Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away;
11 for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.
12 The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.
13 The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.
14 O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.
Could it be that the clerics had in mind the symbol of God’s covenanted, faithful love that is fulfilled in going back to the partridge – Jesus? Certainly, there are two completed aspects of God’s covenant that both point to Jesus – The Old Testament gives us the background for Jesus’ coming in the redemptive work of God through repentance and sacrifice. The New Testament shows the completed work of Christ and the direction of God’s work in redemption through the Kingdom of God.
Two turtle doves…God’s faithful love from eternity to eternity.
1 Timothy 3:16 (NRSV)
16 Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is great: He was revealed in flesh, vindicated in spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory.
A Prayer:
“Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit, great is the mystery of godliness. We are captured by the greatness of your wisdom and love. You have displayed to us your faithfulness…which reminds us constantly to trust in you. You are good to us, your mercies are new every morning. Thank you for your word – the way, the truth, the life.”
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