The “Chalking of the Door” is a way to celebrate and literally mark the occasion of the Epiphany and God’s blessing of our lives and home.
Houses and homes play a large role during the Christmas season. Think about the many homecomings as people travel to their childhood homes. Think about young families transforming newly purchased houses into homes with festive décor primed for new holiday memories. In prayer, we ask God to bless our homes not just at the beginning of the new year but for the whole year. We ask God to make our houses homes; not just any homes but homes of peace and joy. We want our homes to be where the gospel is proclaimed so that eternal joy in Christ becomes the font of all our joyful memories. We even crochet this prayer on pillows and paint it on walls, sometimes with a little humor, “God bless this mess!”
Houses and homes play an important role in the story of Christ’s incarnation, too. We begin the twelve days of Christmas with the celebration of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem, the House of Bread. Jesus, the Bread of Life, has a new home, an earthly one. The Prince of Peace blesses his new earthly home with his saving presence. “Peace on earth and goodwill to men!” At the end of the Christmas Season, we remember the visit of the Magi to Christ’s home. These men from afar bless the Holy Family’s home with material presents and their actual presence, just as homecoming children bless their parents’ home with their presence and maybe some presents too!
January 6th, the day of Epiphany, has become a day to reflect upon our own homes. The “Chalking of the Door” is an old Christian custom performed on January 6th. This custom ties together the visit of the Magi, the blessing of our homes, and the start of a new year. It is a wonderful tradition to wrap up the Christmas Season with gratitude for the past twelve days of festivities and to begin a new year with faith in Christ’s blessings.
First, let’s start with the concept of a “House Blessing,” another old Christian custom. When a family moves into a new house, they may invite over the pastor and perhaps some guests. The small congregation steps into each room where a portion of Scripture is read, and a petition is prayed. A hymn might be sung and perhaps food and drink are served for the invited guests. It is the original housewarming party. Here is a small portion of the liturgy used at the dining room of the house:
A reading from the Psalms:
“The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing” (Ps. 145:15-16).
Let us pray.
Blessed are you, Lord of heaven and earth, for you give us food and drink to sustain our lives and make our hearts glad. Help us to be grateful for all your mercies, and mindful of the needs of others, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The service moves to each part of the home with a different passage and a different prayer.
Every January 6th, following the “House Blessing,” the family may practice the “Chalking of the Door.” Here is the explanation and the liturgy for the Chalking of the Door:
On account of the gifts and blessings that the Magi brought to the house where the Holy Family resided during Christ’s infancy, the Magi have been associated with the blessing of a home. Based on the traditional names given to the Magi: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, an acrostic evolved during the Middle Ages using the letters of the three names (C+M+B), which were written in chalk on people’s houses at the time of the blessing. They formed the sentence in Latin, Christus mansionem benedicat, which is translated as “Christ, bless this house (mansion)”.
On the Day of Epiphany, a family might write on their stoop or by their front door the year around this blessing (e.g. 20 + C+M+B + 25) and say the following:
The three Wise Men, Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar followed the star of God’s Son who became human two thousand and eighteen years ago. May Christ bless our home and remain with us throughout the new year. Amen.
Let us pray.
Visit, O blessed Lord, this home with the gladness of your presence. Bless all who live or visit here with the gift of your love; and grant that we may manifest your love to each other and to all whose lives we touch. May we grow in grace and in the knowledge and love of you; guide, comfort, and strengthen us in peace, O Jesus Christ, now and forever. Amen.
The “Chalking of the Door” is a way to celebrate and literally mark the occasion of the Epiphany and God’s blessing of our lives and home. With time, the chalk will fade. As it does, we let the meaning of the symbols written sink into the depths of our hearts and be manifest in our words and actions, the Latin words, Christus mansionem benedictat, “Christ bless the house.”
Whether or not you have your house blessed in this formal way, ask God to bless your home. Whether or not you practice the “Chalking of the Door,” ask God for a good new year. You need it. You need him. We need the Bread of Life for our daily bread. We need the Prince of Peace for a peaceful reconciliation with God. We need Immanuel, God with us, to watch over and bless us daily. We need him because sin has corrupted our world, our homes, and our hearts. This world is a sinful, messy place. Our homes are sinful, messy places. Our hearts are sinful, messy places. So…God Bless this Mess!
