hello and on behalf of the archdiocese welcome to mosaic. this will be the lash of 2018. we want to thank you for another year of this wonderful public service. it's all about christmas. it doesn't air until december 23rd. you may say, isn't that a little bit late? the recycling gift wrap, you take down the tree and you planning new year's party. no. it's just the beginning of christmas. you know the song about the 12 days. there are 12 days. they are populated not so much by the maids a milking. but, jesus's birth january 13th. the feast of his baptism entering into a wondrous story of human and divine absolutely

heavenly. unique events and characters with love, danger, excitement, poetry and holiness. well, this is the archdiocese of san francisco. join us, learning all about the riches of christmas.

good morning and welcome. i want our guest here today. laura joining me. we know each other. he worked with the archdiocese. the directive which is. >> there is. >> and you would be called a liturgist. a theologian sort of a historian. you are very well versed. they depend on you to make sure that our ceremonies are proper and correct. >> absolutely. we are talking today about christmas. you've created a slideshow for us. our point here today is that christmas is full of riches. if you are willing to slow down you enter into a wonderful set of stories. so, how should we start this?

>> well, i think you talked about earlier that it's not just one day. well, this is by the end of it. it doesn't start 12 days before christmas. then we go for 12 days. as i told you earlier, dead christmas trees are already on the curb. you know toys have been unwrapped and broken by now. in the catholic church, other than easter, it's the one season where we have the octave. we think the christmas day is so important. we celebrate it for eight days. so, that's the very first thing is that we have this and we say, we are going to make a

party out of it. then, within that time, we celebrate the holy family. then we had the baptism of the lord. that's the entire season. >> can we put up our slides? >> yes. we have slides which take us from december 25th and the 13th. >> that's right. the first octave is the birth of christ. immediately following is a feast of the martyr. then we have st. john's which we believe is a similar books of the bible. the feast of the holy emesis, in the bible. it's an important one for us. we had a without any special moniker. then, that sunday we are celebrating the holy family of jesus.

again, monday becomes a down day within the outdoor christmas. then we start our second week. we have january first. celebrating new year's. we have mary the home holy mother of god. then following that with a few memorials. we have two american saints. the fourth and the fifth. then we have an epiphany. which falls on a sunday this year. it's wonderful that it doesn't. normally we have to move it. >> that's right. the arrival of the spirit. that was many places in the east. >> the feast. >> well, the feast of the arrival. all of that. >> that's right. as you can see, next week we

only insert christmas early. so, we have a week of those culminating january the 13th. when we and our christmas season. >> that's right. so, interesting. like the first chapter of many, you are born. taking into order, i'm curious who baptized jesus. >> john the baptist. >> that's right. so, the nativity stories there's only two. but, the baptism story is in all four of the gospels. it's one of the reasons that they find it a very important feast in a bit more authentic. that's where you actually see the revelation of god. so, that is a very important feast.

baptism is a very important indication. where you mark your life as a christian. >> interesting. so, you tell me. >> january the 23rd we had the nativity of christ. immediately following that is down on stevens. he was a deacon. he died at about 35. in the time of christ. >> he died in jerusalem. >> that's right. they were saying, yet the back off. and he says, i'm not going to pick >> in the story is told in the act. it's interesting to me that the first day after jesus's birth is the first death on his behalf. a grim start to that religion. >> and it doesn't get any nicer because the following days that feast.

>> it's there as well. >> i had skipped that. so, shown as an eagle. mainly because he's the most spiritual of them. he is at the very 51st foot level. >> so, he was one of jesus's disciples. we credit the gospel. >> that's right. there's a lot of debate about that. some say he's the gospel to whom jesus loved. he would've been contemporary. >> that's right. so, let's take a little break. the next and that we look at, is the holy innocents. very tragic moments. so, i hope that he can fill us in on that. we are going to take a brief break. we will be back to talk about those riches.

hello and welcome back. laura is the director of the office of worship. let me ask you about that. how many years have you been doing this job? >> this will be my seventh year. >> and what is the training with that clack >> i have a degree here from the university of notre dame. most people either have a masters or a doctorate. so, it's just somebody who has a passion for how the church prays and yet have a little bit

of knowledge of how the ceremonies work how to put things together. >> that's right. and some of the viewers had been there and seen that beautiful energy you are the manager of those things. >> yes. i tell people you know, it's kind of like being a wedding coordinator. you do everything for those readings and the music and making sure that people are in a place at the right time. >> it's a very ornate and complex time. >> that's right. if i've done it i was moving slowly for that day. it's come after that. we are onto the feast of the holiness and. >> that's right. it is the story from luke where those who had heard that there

was a new king that had been born try to get them to tell them where he was. when he realized he wasn't going to find out, he decided the best way to get rid of the king's to kill any male child under the age of two. so he sent out his armies. any boy child under the age of two. it reminds people of the story of moses. it's very similar because luke was echoing that story. so, these of course my very first one. the first people to die unwillingly. so, they weren't saying this is my faith in him going to die for. they are completely innocent yet suffered because of one man's jealousy and anger. and in this time, in our world we have a lot of innocence. we have a lot of children who don't have what they need. so it is to reflect on that. >> i think in the palestinian

context, they had their guys and others. child sacrifice was a part of the pagan religions that preceded them. so, the children do seem to get it. that's unfortunate. >> it is a tyrant seeking to eliminate. >> exactly. >> and then the three kings. we get that piece later. >> you keep saying that. i have to correct you. we always say that. but you know, they had had three guests. so, people have said that there were three. but, i just like to say the wiseman. >> ra. wiseman from the east. >> that's right. astronomers. gentiles. of great learning. >> the first gentiles. they had the shoppers.

these are those gentiles who come forward and seek that side of god. >> welcome we get to these the first week of january. >> that's right. after this, we got a little bit of a lull. while everybody else is celebrating we celebrate the feast of mary mother of god. it used to be a ritual in the jewish tradition. now i focus more on mary and the fact that she said yes to having jesus and that she was his main nurture for his growing up years. we don't know much about jesus's life. so, acknowledging that. the day of prayer for peace and world peace. >> and this feast of mary is this a global feast? the mac yes. that's another point.

a holy day of obligations. >> right. that catholics are required to attend mass on that day. it's a day where we stay separate from sunday's. but it is a special day that we say, this is an important day should spend an hour in prayer remembering those readings on this day. it's all about those people on that day. there is only seven or eight. but they just highlight the extra special days. >> and they are clustered here. isn't that the holy day of obligation? well, this is also a holy day of obligation. >> exactly. >> this enriches your life. mary the mother of god known as our mother. wonderful. what happened after that? >> january second is the feast of basil the great.

>> there are those church icons there. they were there for a century. they had a special knowledge and contribute to the church. there's not many of them. so they have to share that together. but the two of them together they've had such wonderful influences especially to the east. >> how far east are we talking? >> northern africa and antioch. >> so, they were both men. but there were doctors who were female. >> of course. >> they contributed to the literature the church and the understanding of the church. >> absolutely. a special ranking for that. >> and basil the great. >> know.

they were bishops in their own right. >> okay. let's take a pause there. we will take a brief break and come back and learn more.

welcome back. apparently we've also gone to bethlehem. >> this is what we would call in italy a present yell. i was raised in italy for the first years. so, each of my brothers and sisters and i have a full set of a nativity scene. you see them in churches. it was made popular by st. francis. he had seen it back in jerusalem. he brought it over to europe. and again, very popular. initially they are very popular. now we have little figurines which are a bit more rational. we have a tiger so the sheep and goats. everyone else. this little one you are looking at is made out of corn husks. it was given to me by a friend.

that one is good. you see those three kings. there is mary, jesus, injustice. this is a commemoration of what we are celebrating by occasionally doing this christmas tree. sometimes i do and sometimes i don't. >> that make sense. this is from northern italy. >> wonderful. and this is a germanic tradition. >> right. it is a lovely idea. having the star on top. but it's more of a commercial thing than a religious one. they will have that scene somewhere. >> of course. very spiritual. take us through our little trip to christmas >> this year we're celebrating between sunday which is the feast of the holy family and the following. we have two saints are american. >> that's interesting. but you know the reason saints

day is there is the day they date died. there is no coincidence. they just happened to have died. the first is saint elizabeth. >> i think we have slide with information. >> she was a very fascinating woman. she had five children raised episcopalian quite wealthy. her husband was ill. she had to raise her five children alone she lost several of her children. during that time, she found catholicism. she was helped by some sisters. came back to the united states and found it in order. the sisters of charity of st. joseph. they are mainly a teaching hospital worker. so of course it was named after her. >> that was elizabeth. and, died in 1821. >> and she died on january fourth and is at some point in

1975. so was quite a while. this process can be very shot. >> that's right. mother teresa was quite short. especially in our modern age. >> the sparkling resists. and what happened on the next day? >> another american who wasn't american-born but, he was a bohemian. bishop of philadelphia. some people think of cardinal newman. different newman. spelled differently. and, he is very good catechisms. he wrote to catechisms in german. he died in the late 1800s many in the late 1800s. just a very holy man >> those who came here as a missionary.

>> he was a man who is called for the first time and he went to his own bishop in europe and that it want to be a priest. >> interesting. so he kept writing people and saying, can i be a priest. and everybody turned him down because they had too many. so he came to america before somebody would accept him to become a priest. >> he was ordained here. >> right. considering. still mission territory. >> what i presume there were too many priests. with that circuit riding who they went over the whole area. >> and those priests who could serve that community. so you would've served a great deal of the germanic community being on the east coast that would make sense. >> >> absolutely. >> this is january fifth. it's our last slide. >> that's right. i always thought that. i learned somewhat of a tradition. taking down your christmas tree that day and you have a fire.

you burn your christmas tree. >> there's a lot of traditions. >> we cut up the tree, we burned it outside. so, i don't know if there'd appreciate that are not. >> that giftgiving is from the three kings. >> right. it is a celebration of the awakening of realizing the crisis. some people put the emphasis on the three kings. but that's only in one of our scriptures. others put on more the idea of christ present. they saw me traditions especially in europe and the east. i told you i was italian. we have the tradition of the good which you on january the sixth leads hopefully candy in your shoes. so kind of like stockings for the little bit of overlap with santa claus. but, this is also like i said,

in the east many people get gifts. but, you have a 12 day party because this is the end of the rivals of the christmas season. >> and we have about a minute left. but like you to sum up what you would like people to take away about christmas from this discussion. >> enjoying december 25th and if you want to sing happy birthday that's fine. it is a nativity but first of all the season goes for a lot longer because it's so important. but, the most important thing is that as the scriptures say, god so loved the world that he sent his only son. he celebrate the nativity. but we celebrate the incarnation of christ. it's a celebration we have for several days. we have through his family, his mother, these innocent people. i say say merry christmas every day even if you want to keep going until the 19th day we have the baptism because that's christmas season.

>> thank you so much for being here with us. thank you all for watching mosaic enjoy your christmas. (harold) twelve hundred strings of lights.

(betsy) quarter mile of tinsel. (harold) and real snow all the way from switzerland. (betsy) hmmhm... gonna be tough to top. ♪ (betsy) well played. (vo) add some thrill to your wish list. at the season of audi sales event. get exceptional offers now.

live from the cbs bay area studios, this is kpix5 news. the stay at home orders kick in tonight. restaurant around the region feeling the pinch. and can they last another shut down. we are pretty bummed out. we were really excited to get back to work. >> icu capacity drops to just over 21%. in the bay area leaving hospitals scrambling to prepare for yet another surge in covid- 19 patients. and thousands of bay area residents could be without power tomorrow as pg&e considers a power shut off. high fire risk conditions expected to arrive as early as tonight. good morning, it is sunday deer