Dia De Los Reyes
Día De Los Reyes (Three Kings Day) may seem to fall outside of the December Holiday celebration; however, it’s part of the religious symbolism of Christmas, and it is celebrated In Mexico, as well as in other Latin American countries. Nowadays, in many places in the United States, such as New York City, Día de Reyes is becoming a popular celebration, and children especially, look forward to it every year.
Día de los Reyes is celebrated on January 6th., 12 days after Christmas. It is often viewed as the last day of the Christmas season, or the end of the 12 Days of Christmas. Dia de Reyes commemorates the arrival in Bethlehem of the three Wise Men: Melchior, Gaspar,and Balthazar who followed the Star of Bethlehem bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh for the baby Jesus.
Children anxiously await waking up on January 6th. to find toys, and gifts left by the Reyes Magos (The Three Wise Men). In some regions, it is customary to leave out shoes in which treasures may be deposited by the visiting Wise Men.
The Dia de los Reyes is celebrated with a merienda (a light supper) consisting of hot chocolate, and the "Rosca de Reyes" which is a huge oval sweet bread with dry fruit decorations, and sprinkled with sugar on top. Inside the bread, there is a ceramic doll which represents Baby Jesus.
The person who gets the piece of bread with the baby, must be the Godparent of Baby Jesus in the celebration of the Candelaria (Day Of Purification) on February 2nd., This is the day when the Nativity Scenes are put away, and the 2 months long celebration comes to an end.
Feliz Navidad
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12 Comments on Dia De Los Reyes »
Deyanira @ 1:46 pm:
HI
yass @ 5:45 pm:
can u please tell me a little bit more about dia de los reyes majos.
Cristina Oakley @ 7:28 pm:
@yass
tell me exactly what you want to know about Dia De Los Reyes and I’ll try my best to answer your questions.
Cris
MollyB @ 5:31 pm:
It’s interesting to see how the mythical story of 3 wise men (the bible never says how many) arriving at the stable (nothing to indicate that they stayed there long enough for the wise men to find Jesus in a feed trough) has evolved into this celebration. I like the idea of having a final day of celebrations. The closure that it brings. Though to be fair, for us we tend to take down the decorations before New Year’s Day, so it would be dragging things out a bit for us. But it’s interesting, and brings some sense to the “12 Days of Christmas” concept.
Coritha @ 6:04 pm:
I would like to know exactly where do you ccelebrate this holiday.Is it inside or outside
i was here @ 3:50 pm:
hi
stephanie @ 12:44 am:
The Three Kings, also known as The Three Wise Men, traveled a great distance to recognize and honor the Christ child. Twelve days after the birth of Jesus, The Three Kings saw a bright star heading East and they interpreted it as the star of a savior that was born. They headed to Bethlehem where they met King Herod and told him about the birth of the new king. Herod ordered them to find the baby and return to give the news of the place where the Messiah had been born. They found the baby and offered gifts of gold, to represent the spiritual wealth; frankincense, to signify the earth and sky; and myrrh, to oil used for medicinal and spiritual purposes. As they were leaving, they were warned by an angel that they should return home by a different route because Herod intended on killing the baby.
Sylvia @ 8:34 pm:
@ Stephanie, great comment
Antonio @ 6:42 pm:
The information above could of have been more honest. The celebration of the Reyes Magos is accros Latin Aamerican Countries and Europe to include Spain. It is NOT unique to Mejico at all, nor it is a tradtion others copy from Mejico nor it was originated in Mejico. It is a Catholic celebration in Latin countries.
In the Caribbean, Three Kings Day (also known as Epiphany) is an imported tradition that originated with the Spanish settlers. For centuries, the children have celebrated the holiday in the same manner as their ancestors before them. Traditionally, January 6 is celebrated as the day in which the Magi arrived bearing gifts for baby Jesus and it is the day when the island children receive their gifts. It is a tradition older than Santa Claus.
REBECCA @ 3:29 pm:
well it all sound superb as long as its celebrated for the right reason ( the birth of jesus christ) doesnt really matter where it came from mexico is apart of a latin country (as considered from the usa) feliz dia de los reyes a todos !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m Feeling Guilty… « On My Mind @ 4:03 am (Pingback)
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