Every five, six, or eleven years, this feast falls on a Thursday, so the students get to do fun liturgical things on their Thursday night Mass. Like tonight: haul all the year’s candles out to the prayer garden, bless them, then haul it all back in. And carry candles in procession. Could it be Candlemas, by any chance? Pray that fourth joyful mystery, people, and get to Church!
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A few years ago at Thursday Night Liturgy we started in darkness with the students around the walls of the church with candles which were slowly lighted. Then they all processed into the gathering space for the Liturgy of the Word (which is the usual place for TNL liturgies.)
On first-trip-ever to Rome over MLK weekend a few years ago I was really taken aback seeing a large crèche still in place in St Peter’s Square, and Christmas lighting along streets leading to the Vatican. Pretty much guessed that Presentation was the end of ‘European’ Christmas season, and that the decor wasn’t on a par with that eccentric down the street who leaves the lighting under the eaves until April!
A lot of people from Germanic countries put their trees up on Christmas Eve and keep decorations up until Candlemas. My father’s family came from that tradition, and while I take my own tree down in the third week of January, I keep a few decorations up until Candlemas.
The novel American idea that Christmas Day is the *last* day of Christmas is appalling. It was ignited in earnest by Macy’s about 20 years ago, IIRC, when they ran an ad campaign counting down the 12 days before Christmas (because, obviously, Christmas Day should be the day you get the *most* loot under that song, right? (shudder)).