Advent is Coming, But What is Advent?

Advent is a word that means "coming" or "arrival." The Advent season begins the liturgical year, and commences on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. The season is a time of waiting and preparation for Christ's arrival, and celebrates three events: when Jesus was born, when Jesus came into our hearts, and the Second Coming. In reality, His miraculous birth is the one we share and know the most about, so we celebrate it together. The observance of Advent is not a biblical ritual, but rather a tradition that helps us focus on the awesome gift that God gave the world when He sent His son Jesus.

Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, but is not necessarily his birthday. Jews of the time kept up with their birth date and age, but didn't make a big deal of it because that was considered a pagan idea and too self-centered. Designating December 25th as a celebration of Jesus' birth came from the ancient Judaic concept of "Integral Age," that saints and holy men die on the same date that they were conceived (or born). We know that Jesus was crucified during Passover, so early church writers assigned his conception (the Annunciation) to March 25th. Nine months later would be December 25th. There is also evidence that the date was selected to compete with pagan solstice celebrations. In practical terms, the annual celebration of His birth in a completely different time of the year from His resurrection helps us focus on different aspects of Jesus' life. The date doesn't matter; the miracle of His arrival matters.

We don't know exactly when the custom of marking the Advent season began; probably sometime in the fifth century. It was first observed as a fast before Christmas. It was documented as a period of five weeks in which one would fast three times each week, almost like Lent. Early Protestant churches relaxed the rules of Advent fasting, and the Catholic church ended it in the early 20th century. The tradition of fasting lives on in the Eastern Orthodox churches as the six-week Nativity Fast.

The modern traditions surrounding the Advent season have been fine-tuned to help us celebrate the joy of the season and the importance of the birth of our Savior.

The Hanging of the Greens is meant to give a celebratory flair to the opening of the Christmas season. We do this on the first Sunday of Advent, November 29th this year. While most of the heavy Christmas decorations are already up before the service (it's quite a job), all who attend worship service are invited to hang an ornament on the tree or on the garlands of greenery. The evergreen tree and garlands are symbols of everlasting life.

The four Sundays of Advent each celebrate a gift that Christ brings: hope, peace, joy, and love. One of the four candles on the Advent wreath are lit each week to represent those gifts. The rose pink candle is the third to be lit, representing joy. The big white candle in the middle is the Christ candle, lit on Christmas Eve. The Advent candle is lit by a different family each Advent service, who also bring in the banner of the week and lead a congregational prayer.

The traditional color of Advent is purple in the Catholic church and many Protestant churches, red and/or gold is used in Eastern rites, and some Protestant churches use blue. FCC uses purple for our liturgical cloths, most of the advent candles, and our tree decorations.

Some Christians observe Advent at home as well. An Advent calendar is a kind of countdown calendar, often with chocolate or some other treat behind a tiny door for each day through Christmas Eve. Some families light their own candles in an Advent wreath at home. And you can get Advent devotionals with a scriptural lesson to consider for each day.

While Advent officially lasts until Christmas Eve, the Christmas liturgical season continues until Epiphany, also known as Three Kings Day or Twelfth Night (Epiphany Eve). The traditional date is January 6th, often observed by Protestant churches on the first Sunday after the new year. The Christmas decorations are taken down after Epiphany Sunday. But we have a lot of ways to celebrate Christmas in between.

Besides the Hanging of the Greens on November 29th, our annual Christmas Organ Concert will be held on Tuesday, December first. The FCC Christmas Bazaar and Luncheon will be in the church fellowship hall on Saturday, December 5th. Our ladies' Christmas party is scheduled for Tuesday, December 8th. In addition to Advent services continuing on the 6th, 13th, and 20th, we will have our congregational Christmas dinner after church on the 13th. The Faith Quest lock-in will be all night on Friday, December 18th. The Christmas Eve candlelight service is on the evening of Thursday, December 24th. Join us for any and all these events to celebrate the birth of our Savior!