12 Days of Christmas explained

There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me. What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?                                                             This week, I found out. -The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ -The 2 turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments. -The 3 French hens stood for Faith, Hope and Love. -The 4 calling birds were the 4 gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John. -The 5 golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first 5 books of the Old Testament. -The 6 geese a-laying stood for the 6 days of creation. -The 7 swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy. -The 8 maids-a-milking were the eight beatitudes. -The 9 ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience,       Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control. -The 10 lords-a-leaping were the ten commandments. -The 11 pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples. -The 12 drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed. So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol... Pasa buenas vacaciones  <>< From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning, plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality that the children could remember.