Star of wonder
Star of light
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading
Still proceeding
Guide us to thy perfect light.
In France, Epiphany used to be a day of celebration of banquets and celebration. Since the French are now attempting to recover from the excess eating and celebrations of Christmas and New Years, currently there is less feasting. However, it is still common to eat the Kings’ Cake, called Galette des Rois. It is a puff pastry cake which is stuffed with almond and sugar paste. Inserted in the Kings’ Cake is a small porcelain bean or figurine. The person who finds the bean typically wears a gold paper crown.
The tradition of eating a Kings’ Cake dates back to the Middle Ages. On Epiphany, a large collection was taken at church. The parishioners in charge of the collection received a galette to be divided in equal portions among them. Eventually, the tradition spread and each household shared a cake to share with all family members and servants. The first slice was reserved for the first poor who would knock at the door. This slice was known as the “Good Lord’s slice.”
What might we do to provide a ‘God Lord’s Slice’ to the poor?
What other food do you make to celebrate feasts during the church year?
Prayer
Almighty and everlasting God, creator of time and space of season and epoch, of birth and evolution of both living creatures and galaxies alike, hear us as we humbly come before you as we mark our brief passage of time as another year begins. We have heard the Christmas story, about how you came to live among us. As we try to understand what this means in our lives we pray that you will guide our life journeys.
