Advent and Christmas
Advent is a season in the Christian year that lasts for about four weeks. It begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. Advent, a season of preparation for Christmas. Christians prepare for celebrating the birth of Jesus by remembering the longing of the Jews for a Messiah. The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, which means “coming” or “visit.” Advent is a time of waiting--not for presents on Christmas. We wait for Immanuel or "GOD WITH US".
In our secular American celebration of Christmas, the Christmas season begins in the weeks prior to Christmas Day when retailers start marketing gifts, decorations go up, and we hear Christmas carols everywhere. So Advent overlaps with what is usually thought of in American culture as the Christmas season. But its beginning and ending are well defined, and its themes are quite a bit different from what is commonly associated with secular Christmas celebrations.
In the Christian calendar, the season of Christmas actually begins on Christmas Eve and lasts for twelve days, ending on January 6 which is Epiphany. Consider not packing up the tree the day after Christmas but start to include ways to extend the season of 12 days.
In our secular American celebration of Christmas, the Christmas season begins in the weeks prior to Christmas Day when retailers start marketing gifts, decorations go up, and we hear Christmas carols everywhere. So Advent overlaps with what is usually thought of in American culture as the Christmas season. But its beginning and ending are well defined, and its themes are quite a bit different from what is commonly associated with secular Christmas celebrations.
In the Christian calendar, the season of Christmas actually begins on Christmas Eve and lasts for twelve days, ending on January 6 which is Epiphany. Consider not packing up the tree the day after Christmas but start to include ways to extend the season of 12 days.
Interactive Advent Calendar for Adults
Advent Wreath
Simplify Christmas
“ ‘And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! ‘Maybe Christmas,’ he thought, ‘doesn’t come from a store. ‘Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more!’”
(How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss) |
On a collision course at AdventWork time smacks into church time. Family time clashes with deadlines. Fraught time crashes headlong into the sacred time of Advent.
December is a time for the familiar cycle of work deadlines and family obligations. But Advent overrides these obligations with its season of expectation and hope. |
The Digital Nativity Story
Alternative Gift Giving
t may seem like a simple question, but as we reflect on the lessons of Advent we often find that the "stuff" we give falls short of the true gifts of the season - Hope, Joy, Peace and Love.
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Blue ChristmasIn A Charlie Brown Christmas, the title character is lamenting to his
friend Linus that amid the gifts and parties and glitter of the season, he feels empty and unhappy, like he's not getting the real joy of Christmas. Linus replies that only he could take the best holiday of the year and turn it into a problem! But the truth is Charlie Brown is not alone. |