Merry Christmas, y’all!
Even though our society is already a month into its Christmas/Winter/Holidays/Sales party, for those in the liturgical Church the official Christmas season begins today. Advent, a Latin word meaning “the coming,” is the beginning of the official Church calendar year for the Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Anglican and a number of other churches. Up until now, these churches (of which I am part) have been observing a long period of life called “Ordinary Time.” (As our pastor says, though, “ordinary time” is simply another way to say, “our everyday life.”)
Advent marks the beginning of the Church calendar, so… Happy New Year, too! Here is a breakdown of this holiday season in the Church…
Dec. 3-24 — Advent (Preparation Time for Christmas)
Dec. 25 — Feast of the Nativity (Christmas Day)
Dec. 25-Jan 5 — Christmastime (The 12 Days of Christmas)
Jan. 6 — Feast of the Epiphany (Celebrating wise men, shepherds, etc.)
But it all starts with Advent, which has a dual purpose. First, it serves as a preparation time for our hearts and minds for the wonderful celebration of the coming of Jesus into the world at Christmas. But it also serves as a period of longing for His return.
Advent’s timeline runs from the Sunday closest to the Feast of Saint Andrew (Nov. 30th) through the four Sundays before Christmas Day. Advent started today, December 3rd. Christmas Day falls on a Monday this year, so even though there will be four Sundays before Christmas, there is really only three full weeks. It’s a short season! And if you love Christmas as much as I do, then that’s not a good thing. But it is what it is.
If you are a newbie to the whole Advent thing, here’s an Advent primer copied from my Advent devotional book.
One of the most ancient Christmas traditions is the “Advent” celebration. In the Medieval Church, Advent was a time of fasting, prayer and spiritual preparation in advance of the holiday, much like Lent. It varied in length, from three weeks to three months long! Advent lasts through the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day. In the Eastern Church (Orthodox), it is six Sundays long.
Because of a lack of reliable written resources, describing the earliest advent celebrations can be rather tricky. The Advent wreath tradition can only be concretely traced back to the 16th Century, after the Reformation, where it was found primarily in the Lutheran homes of Europe. It started as an observance around the table, immediately after the dinner prayer. Eventually, it also took form in the public church. However, there is evidence that families in Europe created forms of an Advent wreath with candles over a thousand years ago. In many pre-Christian cultures of Europe and Scandinavia, evergreen boughs had been fashioned into circles with candles embedded in them. The evergreen represented life and the candles were lit in hopes that the miserable winter would one day end.
When Christianity swept through Europe, Christian families often adopted the pagan practice and used the wreaths as a festive celebration of Jesus. Typically, families would cut down and then form a wreath out of the branch of an evergreen tree. Candles served many purposes. They were a source of light, of warmth and brought some emotional joy in the midst of the cold winter. Each week of the Advent season, one candle’s light was added to the wreath so that the light inside the home would grow stronger until the last candle was lit and the family would celebrate in marvelous light.
Typically, a green wreath is used to represent the eternal nature of Christ and the everlasting life He brings. The colors of the five candles also have significance and, often, varies in color based on availability and topic. Many different topics have been celebrated each week, including light, holiness, prophecy, hope, joy, love, peace, and salvation. I usually have three purple taper candles to represent Christ’s royalty, since purple was considered to be the color of royalty in the ancient world. My fourth candle is either pink or red, to represent either Christ’s humanity or His sacrificial death. A large white candle, called the “Christ Candle,” is often placed in the center of the wreath and is only lit on Christmas Day to celebrate the arrival of Christ.
For the past 15 years I have been keeping the Advent wreath every week of the season. When I was a bachelor the wreath was usually some wimpy dollar garland with 10-cent taper candles. (Hey, I’m cheap!) But this year Mrs. Newton convinced me to buy a $30 Advent wreath with bows, pine cones and candle holders. It looks amazing. Our candles are small hand-dipped tapers that Shannon made at Silver Dollar City in Missouri last summer.
Our nightly routine is simple yet ordered. Following my daily devotional, we light a candle each evening before bed, read the recommended Scriptures and the devotional message, and sometimes sing a related carol. We conclude with a formal prayer. In 2015 I did things by myself. In 2016 we did it together and even included her family when we visited for Christmas. It was really special. I had hoped to revise the devotional this year or create something new but time, poor health and a busy life caught up to me. Maybe next year!
However, I’ll do something on this blog each week this year, celebrating a different aspect of Jesus’ coming into the world.
Until my next post… Happy Advent and Merry Christmas!
— John
J.C. Newton 