The Season of Advent
Advent is the Season in the church which precedes the great Feast of Christmas, the celebration of the Incarnation of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Advent changes the mindset of the church. We have spent many weeks in the Season of Trinity, with our churches in Green, resplendent with flowers and joyous melodies; now the churches go into Purple, the penitential colour of fasting, sorrow for sin and preparation for the Christmas Season.
Advent means ‘coming’ in Latin, and in this Season we prepare ourselves for three ‘comings’…
- The first is the preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ into the world as one of us…the Incarnation
- The second is for Him to come and be resident in our hearts as our Saviour and Lord
- The third, is our preparation for our Lord Jesus Christ coming again in glory “to judge both the quick and the dead” as we say in the Creed.
This year, Advent Sunday is on 29th November, and our churches change to purple frontals and vestments. Advent is a time of austerity, and many Christians (especially in the Orthodox tradition) fast during this time, abstaining from meat and using the time to prepare themselves for the celebration of the Incarnation of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Any time of fasting and prayer leads to heightened spiritual awareness, and Advent is designed to turn our minds away from the craziness of the pre-Christmas shopping advertising activity, and focus us on the simplicity of the Christ Child, born in a manger….what a contrast!
Music in Advent is very special, and there are many beautiful Advent Carols. O come, O come, Emmanuel is one of the best-loved Advent carols. Hymns also contemplate the Second Coming of Christ in Glory and emphasise the need to cleanse one’s heart in preparation of the Incarnation.
Perhaps the most noticeable addition to liturgical life is the Advent Wreath which takes the place of flowers in the church. There is a separate page on the Advent Wreath for your information, but in brief, a candle is lit each week in Advent, with prayers, leading up to the central candle being lit on Christmas Eve – it is a lovely tradition.
We wish you a strong and disciplined Advent Season, one in which you deepen your experience of Jesus through fasting and prayer, and in which you prepare yourself to meet the Lord in the great Feast of Christmas.
Every blessing to you
+Michael
Advent 2020
The Advent Wreath
The use of the wreath and candles during Advent are a longstanding Christian tradition that was originally used in the Middle Ages as part of the spiritual preparation for Christmas. The wreath and candles are full of symbolism tied to the Christmas season. The wreath itself, which is made of various evergreens, signifies continuous life. The circle of the wreath, which has no beginning or end, symbolizes the eternity of God, the immortality of the soul, and the everlasting life we find in Christ. Even the evergreens that make up the wreath have their own meanings that can be adapted to our faith. The wreath is meant to remind us of both the immortality of our souls and God’s promise of everlasting life to us through Jesus Christ our Lord. The candles on the Advent Wreath also have their own meanings and significance. The four candles around the circle of the Wreath represent the four Sundays of Advent, and one is lit each Sunday. Three of the candles are purple or violet, symbolising prayer, penitence and self-sacrifice. The third Sunday sees a pink candle (symbolising Joy) being lit. Lastly, a white candle, placed in the middle of the Wreath, is lit on Christmas Eve, symbol of the Incarnation.
The white candle is placed in the middle of the wreath and is lit on Christmas Eve. This candle is called the “Christ Candle” and represents the life of Jesus Christ. The colour white is for purity—because Jesus Christ is our sinless, pure Saviour.
Making an Advent Wreath is creative and meaningful, and the symbolism is a good teaching aid to all ages of parishioners. It can also be a fun-filled exercise in your family home. An Advent Wreath does not need to be costly, and a simple wreath is probably the most compatible with the Season. The lighting of the candles each week heightens the awareness of all to the approaching Christmas Feast. Below is the Advent Collect, a prayer that is used each day in Advent. The Advent Collect ALMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which Thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when He shall come again in His glorious Majesty, to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through Him who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen . |
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