Unbeknownst to many, the Feast of the Three Kings marks the official end of the liturgical Christmas of the Philippines. It is celebrated every January 6, but this year the event officially ends this Sunday, January 13, on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The twelve days of Christmas end with the Feast of the Epiphany, also called the The Adoration of the Magi or the The Manifestation of God. It is also known as the Pasko ng Matatanda (Feast of the Elderly); the day that especially honors senior citizens.
The Feast of the Three Kings is a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ. The magi presented three gifts to Jesus Christ which reflects who Jesus is and what His mission was to fulfill. The gold represented the fact that Jesus was royal. The frankincense supports the claim that Jesus is divine and the myrrh was for the importance of the mortality of Jesus. The importance of the gifts was the message that each one conveyed about Jesus.
In the city of Manila, some prestigious clubs like Casino Español organize events for the feast, one of which is a parade in remembrance of the story behind the three wise men. Participants are dressed in royal robes while the Three Kings ride on horses, as there are no camels in the Philippines. They parade down the block and end at the clubhouse where children of the Spanish community await them to receive more Christmas gifts. There are gifts prepared for the poor children and orphans too.
The town of Gapan in Marinduque also has its own celebration of the feast. There is a religious folk play in which the Three Kings follow a star and meet Herod and eventually find the holy Infant Jesus.
An article by Christina I. Hermoso quoted Pope Benedict XVI: “The Church has for its mission to shine the Light of Christ to the world. Epiphany is a mystery of light. This light is the love of God, revealed in the Person of the Word Incarnate.” The Church said that while “Christmas is considered the family feast of Christianity, the Epiphany is the world feast of the Catholic Church, the feast of Christ’s divinity.”
Trivia
The magical bearers of gifts for Filipino children during Christmas were the Three Kings, not Santa Claus. In the old tradition, shoes were brightly polished and left on the window at night with the cleanest socks. The children believe that the Three Kings are on their way to Bethlehem and would pass by their homes to fill their shoes and socks with gifts. Some would thoughtfully leave some straw or dry grass for the camels; if these were gone in the morning, surely the camels must have been terribly hungry.