On the first day of christmas
...igh Grant who wrote "A Celebration and History," a work entitled, "Mirth without Mischief" was the first to refer to it. A second source purports that this a Christmas song with as deep a meaning, albeit subtle, as any Christmas carol is. In 1995, a Father Hal Stockert wrote an article for the Catholic Information Network explaining the symbolism of each line. (www.cin.org/twelvday.html) To give a brief review of his article, Fr. Stockert writes that this carol was "written in England as one of the catechism songs to help young Catholics learn the tenets of their faith." He asserts that it was composed when the Catholic religion in England was seriously out-of-favor with the ruling party. From 1558 - 1829, "Catholics were prohibited from ANY practice of their faith by law - private or public." The punishment for the crime of exercising the Catholic faith could include death. In the year 1829, Parliament removed the restrictions. The Truth as regards many a religious symbol or event, may forever be clouded in controversy. Suffice to say that both sources agree that the song is of early date, that it was written for children and that it was composed to help them sharpen their memories. It may very well be that...