Three Kings: What does the lettering “C+M+B” mean?

1. Who is celebrated at Epiphany?

2. How is Epiphany celebrated?

3. What does the blessing C+M+B mean?

A look at the calendar reveals it: January 6th is “Epiphany”. While the day is celebrated nationwide, you can only enjoy a day off in three federal states.

So if you’re in Bavaria, Saxony-Anhalt and Baden-Württemberg lives, then you are free, with a few exceptions. Many shops will remain closed in these federal states on this day. In the remaining 13 countries, this day is considered a working day.

Who is celebrated at Epiphany?

January 6th is a Christian feast day celebrating the Catholic Church’s holy kings, who were guided to the baby Jesus by the Star of Bethlehem. The Archdiocese of Cologne declares that the saint’s feast day falls on the feast of the Epiphany.

The eponymous three wise men are Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar, who, according to the archdiocese, received their name sometime in the 9th century. However, not only did the saints only get their name in the course of history, they were also not always kings. The men who brought gold, frankincense and myrrh to the Christ child are wise men in the Bible.

How is Epiphany celebrated?

Epiphany is a church holiday and comes with Christian traditions. This also includes the well-known star singers. They go from house to house dressed as the Three Wise Men.

Even though the custom is very old and, as the diocese of Essen points out, was already celebrated in the Middle Ages, today we tend to associate star singing with the largest solidarity campaign by children and for children, which was brought back to life in 1959 by the children’s missionary organization.

Since then, gifts have been collected from children and young people by a bishop’s order with the aim of helping children and young people in Asia, Oceania, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe. With this new occasion, children and young people go around the houses between the end of December and the third Friday in January and collect gifts and give a blessing that you probably know.

What does the blessing C+M+B mean?

Above the door of shops and some houses or private apartments you can sometimes see a sticker with something like blessed chalk on it 20*C+M+B+24 was written. The abbreviation does not mean the Three Kings themselves, but rather a blessing.

According to the children’s missionary organization, the blessing when written out means “Christus Mansionem Benedicat”. In German: Christ bless this house. The three plus signs stand for the Trinity of God, the * symbolizes the star that the wise men from the East followed. The blessing is surrounded by the current year.

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