Christmas Colors for the liturgy

Everyone knows that red and green are the secular colors for Christmas.  I was told emphatically by someone that RED is the color of Christmas.  When it comes to the Liturgical colors we go to the documents of the church.   The Liturgical color for Christmas (The priest wears this color vestment) is White.  #346 of the General instruction of the Roman Missal says: "White is used in the Offices and Masses during Easter and Christmas seasons........"   At the end of the same paragraph it also says "Gold or silver vestments may be worn on more solemn occasions in the dioceses of the United States of America."  This means that liturgical color for Christmas can be white, gold or silver.

In the liturgy red is used at very specific times.  In the same paragraph it says that red is used whenever we recall Christ's death in a special way:  Passion Sunday, Good Friday.  Red is also used for Pentecost as a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and on the feast days of Martyrs.  Since it is NOT a feast of a martyr or Christ's death, red would not be the correct color for Christmas.

When dealing with the liturgy it is NOT a matter of personal likes or dislikes or tastes, colors have meaning to Catholics.   It is good to know the meaning.

When I was at St. Agnes Parish(Brett Farvre's old parish in Green Bay) parishioners would get angry at Advent when we switched from the Color of Ordinary Time(Green-- Packer color) to the color of Advent (Violet-- Viking Color).

peace