By Jessica Easthope
If you love Christmas, here’s some good news of great joy – it’s still here!
“Most of the time people get to the epiphany, maybe, and they get rid of their decorations,” said Fr. Jim Cunningham, parochial vicar at St. Francis de Sales Church in Belle Harbor. “Sometimes people wait till January 2nd. People tend to rush everything.”
Father Cunningham says Catholics should keep their Christmas trees, decorations, and most importantly, nativities up past the Epiphany until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which is the Sunday after the Epiphany.
“Jesus was an adult and was baptized by John in the Jordan,” he explained. “But liturgically, we always celebrate the baptism of the Lord. When God spoke from heaven and said, this is my beloved son, listen to him.”
The 120 6-foot trees and angels in between that line the property at St. Francis de Sales appear every year thanks in part to parishioner Mike Lee.
“We love doing it,” Lee said. “We really do. It’s become a labor of love. Takes us about three weeks to get everything in place and get ready for the lighting. It’s beautiful.”
Lee and a team of 50 volunteers unload the trees, stand them up with rebar, decorate them and add messages from parishioners who have lost loved ones and want to honor them. Parishioners can pay $300 for a tree or $500 for an angel โ all the money goes back to the parish.
The volunteers also set up a life-size nativity. Lee says his faith has opened doors his whole life โ and 10 years ago this became a chance to give back and make his parish merry and bright.
“Faith for me is everything,” Lee said. “It’s the center of my life. It’s why we do it.”
“We need this light,” Father Cunningham said. “Slow down. Enjoy the fullness of the Christmas season.”
People in Belle Harbor and beyond can enjoy the Christmas display at St. Francis de Sales through the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord on January 11.