A Liturgical Resource: The Nativity of Our Lord

Notes from Ordering Our Days in His Peace:  An Introduction to the Christian Church Year
by H. R. Curtis.
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To review:  the Church year has three major seasons:  Christmas, Easter, and the Time of the Church (also known as Ordinary Time).  Each season of the year focuses on a single part of the salvation story.  Christmas shares with us the story of how God the Father sent Jesus the Son into the world to be born and to live our humanity (only perfectly, of course).  Christmas ends with the onset of Easter, the season that shares the story of what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross and rising again from the dead.  The Time of the Church shares the tale of the Holy Spirit and His work among us in and through Word and Sacrament.  The Church employs various liturgical tools to help in the telling of this story of God and His love for us.

THE TIME OF CHRISTMAS --- The Nativity of Our Lord

The season of hope, Advent, ends with the fulfillment of that hope, the birth of our Savior and King, Jesus Christ.  Note that God did not send a prophet or an angel on Christmas morning to redeem us from our sins.  No, He sent His only Son.  So, on this day, we celebrate the Feast of the Nativity.

Liturgical colors during The Nativity of Our Lord:  white

The color of purity, light, divinity, eternity, and joy.

Liturgical music during The Nativity of Our Lord:  the "Gloria in Excelsis" is reinstated

Now that Jesus has returned, so has our hymn of praise.  So, with the angels, we sing:

Glory be to God on high;  and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.
We praise thee, we bless thee, we worship thee,
   we glorify thee, we give thanks to thee, for thy great glory.
O Lord God, heavenly king, God the Father Almighty.
O Lord, the only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
   that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us.
Thou that takest away the sin of the world, receive our prayer.
Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father, have mercy upon us.
For thou only art only;  thou only art the Lord.
Thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost,
   art most high in the glory of God the Father.  Amen.

Special observances during The Nativity of Our Lord:  the Twelve Days of Christmas

Because the birth of Christ, Our Savior and King, is too great a celebration for just one day, the Church spreads it out over twelve days beginning on December 25 and ending on January 5.  Each day has a unique focus:*

December 25:  Feast of the Nativity
December 26:  St. Stephen Day
December 27:  St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist
December 28:  Holy Innocents and Martyrs Day
December 29:  St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury
December 30:  Feast of the Holy Family
December 31:  Feast of Saint Sylvester
January 1:  Circumcision and Naming of Jesus
January 2:  Octave Day of St. Stephen
January 3:  Feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus
January 4:  Octave Day of Holy Innocents
January 5:  Twelfth Night

In my experience, Lutherans do not actively observe each day of the Twelve Days of Christmas.  They focus on the days pertaining to Christ and the Holy Family, as opposed to the days pertaining to martyrs of the faith (with the exception of Holy Innocents Day).

*Information pertaining to the specific emphases of each day of the Twelve Days of Christmas was taken from Wikipedia, not from Ordering Our Days in His Peace.

Worship events during The Nativity of Our Lord:  midnight and morning services

Since the announcement of the birth of Christ is recorded in Scripture as coming first to the shepherds as they watched their flocks by night, many Lutheran churches celebrate the arrival of Christ with a Divine Worship Service at midnight;  others hold service on Christmas morning.  Some churches do both.