Heilige Drei Könige
Heilige Drei Könige is celebrated on 6th January. In some areas of Germany it is a public holiday.
The day celebrates the arrive of the three wise men from the east in Bethlehem. In the Evangelical Church it is known as Epihanias - similar to the English name of the day in some countries “Epiphany”.
On this day, groups of children known as Sternsinger go from door to door and sing a song or recite a poem or prayer. They then write in chalk above the door C+B+M and the number of the year with three crosses, eg. 20*C+M+B+08. These letters stand for the latin phrase Christus mansionem benedicat, meaning “God protect this house”.
The Sternsinger also collect donations for childrens’ charities.
To hear a simple explanation and a short discussion in German, listen to the podcast:
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Tags: Christmas
January 2nd, 2008 at 10:55 am
I realised after I had written the text, that Maria said in the podcast 20*C+M+B+08 is for Casper, Melchior and Balthazar – Wikipedia says it is for Christus mansionem benedicat.
Perhaps someone can tell us which is correct?
January 2nd, 2008 at 11:17 am
Another interesting fact – the remains of the Three Kings are said to be contained in a shrine in Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom).
I first visited the shrine when I was on a school exchange in 1987 – unfortunately I don’t have the photos with me in Germany to scan.
So to get an impression of what the shrine looks like, take a look at this video: http://tinyurl.com/2vo8bh
February 13th, 2008 at 1:02 am
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