| |
A Resource by Mark D. Roberts |
|
Advent. Advent Meaning. the Meaning of Advent. Advent Practices. Observing Advent. Advent Celebrations. Adventophile. Advent F.A.Q.
Advent and the Christian Year
by Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts
Copyright © 2007 by Mark D. Roberts
Note: You may download this resource at no cost, for personal use or for use in a Christian ministry, as long as you are not publishing it for sale. All I ask is that you give credit where credit is due. For all other uses, please contact me at mark@markdroberts.com . Thank you.
Posts for 2007
My Greatest Advent Discovery Revisited and Retooled 
Part 1 of Advent and the Christian Year (2007) 
Posted for Monday, December 3, 2007
On Saturday evening I attended a Christmas parade in my new hometown of Boerne, Texas. Actually, it was a Weihnachts Parade. The German word for Christmas is Weihnachten (literally, "holy nights"). Boerne, which is pronounced like "journey," (in German, Börne, named after the 19th-century German writer, Ludwig Börne) has strong German roots, which are celebrated at Christmas and other times of the year. (The Boerne Village Band, a German, oompah-type band, was founded in 1860 and continues to this day, playing all over Texas.)
 The parade was well attended, not only by residents of Boerne, but also by folks from throughout the area. Thus the crowds were ample. When I stopped in a local mini-mart to pick up a drink, the line must have been twenty people long, and was moving rather slowly. As I waited in that line, feeling anxious for fear I'd miss the start of the parade, I was reminded of one of my all-time favorite blog posts: "My Greatest Advent Discovery." It's time to roll out that post again, since we've just entered the season of Advent. (Photo: A few minutes betore the parade begins)
I have a confession to make: I am terrible at waiting. This makes me an especially lousy Christmas shopper, because, almost by definition, Christmas shopping requires waiting in line. Whether you're at a fine department store or just grabbing some chips from the local mini-mart, chances are you'll be waiting in line during the month of December. And, if you're like me, inevitably you'll end up right behind somebody who needs a price check on aisle 3 or who requires some sort of special assistance. This sort of thing can just about ruin the Christmas season for me, because waiting makes me grumpy.
 A few years ago I was waiting in a long line at Costco. In spite of my best efforts to find the shortest line, of course I ended up in the slowest moving line of all. As I stood there, I could feel my blood pressure rising. The more I waited, the more frustrated I became. Words I never say (well, almost never) filled my mind, and I'm not referring to "Happy Holidays." "Why do I always get in the slowest line?" I asked myself. "And why is this taking so long?" I grumbled under my breath. (Photo: my son and my wife enjoying a parade float)
Then, all of a sudden, it dawned on me. I had one of those moments of grace, in which God managed to slip a word into my consciousness. As I stood in line at Costco, I was waiting. Waiting! I was doing exactly what Advent is all about. Of course I wasn't waiting for God to save me or anything momentous like that. I was simply waiting to get out of that store so I could go home. But, nevertheless, I was waiting. I was forced to experience something that's at the very heart of Advent.
So I decided, right then and there in the line at Costco, that I was going to use the experience of waiting in line as an Advent reminder. In that moment, and in similar moments yet to come, I was going to remember what Advent is all about. I was going to put myself back into the shoes of the Jews who were waiting for the Messiah. And I was going to remember that I too am waiting for Christ to return.
As I decided to let the experience of forced waiting be a moment of Advent reflection rather than a cause for getting an ulcer, I found my anger quickly drain away. Waiting in line at Costco became, not a trial to be endured, but a moment of grace. And get this: I even found myself thanking God for the chance to slow down a bit and wait. This was, indeed, a miracle.
By the time I got to check out, my heart was peaceful, even joyous. I felt as if I had discovered a treasure. The next Sunday I shared my discovery with my congregation at Irvine Presbyterian Church. In the days that followed, many of my flock told me how much their Advent had been improved by thinking of waiting in line, not as a curse, but as a potential blessing.
Honestly, I can still forget my commitment to use waiting in line as a time for Advent reflection. My gut instinct can take over. I can easily start grinding my teeth as I think of how much time I'm losing. But then a gentle breeze from the Spirit will remind me of how waiting can enrich my life, rather than rob me of joy.
In the last few years, what I hate most about the days prior to Christmas – waiting in line – has become a quasi-sacrament, a time to experience God’s grace. If you’ve never tried this, it may sound to you as if I’ve lost my mind. This sounds even sillier than wearing purple in the weeks before Christmas rather than red and green. But let me encourage you to try it. By experiencing waiting in line not as a punishment but as a opportunity to wait peacefully, you'll find a bit of grace, hidden and ready to be discovered, much like a little picture behind one of those doors of an Advent calendar.
Posts for 2006
Why I Am an Adventophile
Part 1 of Advent and the Christian Year (2006)
Posted for Monday, December 11, 2006
I am an avowed Adventophile. I may be the only person in the world who claims this title, at least in the way I mean it. (I found one use of "adventophile" through a Google search, but this referred to a lover of Advent stereo speakers.) I'm an Adventophile in that I'm a lover of Advent.
If you've been reading my blog for the last couple of years, this comes as no surprise. But if you're one of my newer readers, you may be perplexed. Why would somebody love Advent? And, for that matter, what really is Advent, anyway?
I was not raised to be an Adventophile. In fact, the word "Advent" had a relatively narrow meaning for me. It was used only to describe the special paper calendars we used each year in the month of December. With their glittery winter scenes, they helped me and my siblings whet our appetites for the coming of Christmas. But there wasn't anything terribly meaningful about opening up little paper windows in order to see little drawings of bells, candy canes, and reindeer. It was fun. That's all.
In my church growing up, I heard the word "Advent" rarely, mostly to describe the wreath we used in the weeks before Christmas to focus our thoughts on the coming (Latin adventus, from which we get Advent) of Christ. Yet otherwise the Sundays prior to Christmas seemed more Christmasy than Adventish, with red and green decorations and lots of Christmas carols. |
|
| |
An Advent calendar like those I used as a child
|
When I arrived at Irvine Presbyterian Church in 1991, Loren Wiebe, my worship director, explained his idea of Advent, including the conviction that we really shouldn't sing any Christmas carols prior to Christmas Eve. Loren had tried out this idea on the congregation a couple of years before I arrived, but hadn't had much success. Most people resented not being able to sing carols during Advent. Though I ended up somewhere in between Loren and the congregation on the carol-singing question, I did appreciate Loren's understanding that Advent was a special season of waiting and watching, a time to prepare our hearts to celebrate the coming of Christ at Christmas.
Loren helped me begin to discover a whole new dimension of worship and faith that I had missed in my first 33 years of life. Of course Loren didn't make this up. He was drawing upon centuries and centuries of Christian experience. In fact, setting aside a time of year to prepare for celebrating the coming of Christ is something Christians have been doing in one way or another for about 1500 years.
During the last fifteen years I've grown from someone with a modest awareness of Advent to become what I'm calling an Adventophile, a lover of Advent. Why? There are many reasons. But perhaps the most important one has do to with how Advent has enriched my relationship with God during the weeks prior to Christmas.
Like most other Christians who enjoy the secular aspects of Christmas (presents, parties, decorations, etc.), I've struggled to focus on "the reason for the season." To be sure, I go to church on Christmas Eve (four times, actually, five this year). And my family and I include special Christmas prayers in our cultural celebrations. But, still, the days prior to Christmas are filled with all sorts of pleasures that don't make it easy for me to focus on what Christmas is really all about.
That's where Advent comes in. By recognizing Advent, by focusing on its themes, by using its distinctive colors, I've injected a hearty dose of genuine spirituality into my Christmas spirit. Advent has given me a way to enrich my celebration of Christmas and, even more importantly, my relationship with God.
So I'm now a lover of Advent because it means so much to me. I've also seen how Advent can enrich the lives of others, especially those in my church. So I've become a bit of an Advent evangelist, one who has taken on the responsibility of telling others the good news about Advent.
If all of this is relatively new to you, tomorrow I'll lay out a few basics about Advent, its meaning and practices. In the meanwhile, if you'd like to begin to explore the significance of Advent, let me point you to a couple of my recent posts (December 3; December 10). Be sure to use the virtual Advent wreath that goes with these posts! Also, you can use my online Advent calendar (homepage: above) to focus your prayers in an Advent direction.
Advent F.A.Q.
Part 2 of series: Advent and the Christian Year (2006)
Posted for Tuesday, December 12, 2005
If you're relatively unfamiliar with Advent, or if you'd like a brief refresher, here are some answers to Frequently Asked Questions. (Note: This is an edited and updated version of a blog post I have put up in previous years.)
What is Advent?
Advent is a season of the Christian year when we focus on the coming of Christ. It's a time of waiting, hoping, and getting in touch with our need for a Savior. It's a season of preparation for Christmas, much as Lent is a season of preparation for Easter. In some Christian churches, Advent is a time of fasting and repentance.
In Advent we look back to the experience of Israelites as they yearned for God to forgive their sin and restore their nation. We put ourselves in their shoes as they hoped for the coming of the Messiah. Thus we ready our hearts to celebrate the good news of Christmas.
Yet Advent is also a time to look forward to the second coming of Christ. Though defeating sin and death through His cross and resurrection, Christ hasn't yet finished His work of renewing creation and restoring the kingdom of God. Thus we continue to experience the brokenness of this world, in violence, disease, natural disasters, and other forms of human suffering. In Advent we yearn for God's completion of the salvation begun in Christ.
What does "Advent" mean?
"Advent" comes from the Latin word adventus, which means "visit" or "coming" or "arrival." The season of Advent is a time to get ready for the two "visits" of Christ: His first coming through the Incarnation, and His second coming as the reigning Lord.
When is Advent?
All Christians who keep Advent do so immediately prior to Christmas. Western Christians (Catholics, Protestants) begin Advent four Sundays before Christmas. Because Christmas falls on various days of the week, Advent ranges from 22 to 28 days (including Christmas Eve). This year (2006) is the shortest possible Advent, since Christmas Day comes on Monday. Technically, in most traditions, Christmas Eve is both the end of Advent and the beginning of Christmas (at sunset).
Eastern Orthodox Christians have a different liturgical calendar. Though they celebrate the nativity of Christ on December 25th, they begin their Advent fast on November 15th. Advent, or the Nativity Fast, for the Orthodox, is a serious season of preparation and self-denial. (For more information on the Eastern Orthodox calendar, check out this excellent Orthodox Church in America website.)
Many of us associate Advent with so-called Advent calendars. Most of these begin with December 1st, so they don't exactly correlate with the season of Advent, the start of which moves a bit from year to year. Most Advent calendars are more secular than spiritual in theme.
Where and when did Advent begin?
For over ten centuries Christians many Christians in Europe have used the time prior to the celebration of Christmas as a season of preparation. Actually, the earliest recognition of Advent was in anticipation of Epiphany (on January 6, when Christians remember Jesus's baptism and/or the visit of the Magi). Historically, Advent was a time, rather like Lent, of fasting and spiritual preparation. The specifics of Advent celebration varied widely throughout Christian history, and at times the season was ignored. But in the last few centuries the basic Advent traditions have become relatively fixed.
Where can I find more historical information on Advent?
I have found the following links to be helpful:
"The History of Advent" from Inter Mirifica
"Advent – Close Encounters of the Liturgical Kind" in Christianity Today
"Advent" in the Catholic Encyclopedia
"The Season of Advent" from The Voice
Why do Christians celebrate Advent?
Christians celebrate Advent for many different reasons. For some, I'm sure, it's a continuation of personal and family traditions. They grew up recognizing Advent, and they still do today, for nostalgic if not spiritual reasons. Others, like me, have come to appreciate Advent in adulthood, since it's not something we grew up with. (I describe my own "discovery" of Advent in this post from 2004 .)
I believe Advent is important because it helps us focus on certain crucial aspects of Christian faith and theology that we easily overlook. For example, apart from Advent, I don't look forward to Christ's second coming very often. Among the personal reasons for keeping Advent, many Christians recognize that a season of preparation and even (gasp!) self-denial enriches both our celebration of Christmas and our relationship with God.
Why do some Christians not celebrate Advent?
Most Christians who don't recognize Advent are unaware of its practices and benefits. This was true for most of my life as a Christian. I expect there are different reasons for this unawareness. Some churches, especially of the evangelical/fundamentalist variety, were once very skittish about anything that seemed too "Catholic." So one could have grown up in a church that celebrated Christmas but neglected Advent completely.
It's important for me to say here that there is no biblical imperative to keep Advent. Nor is there specific biblical teaching on what to do in Advent. This is very much like Christmas, which is also an extra-biblical tradition. Though I believe that Christians can be blessed by keeping Advent, I respect the right of any Christian to choose otherwise. This is not a matter of right and wrong for those of us who are guided primarily by Scripture. Catholic and Orthodox believers are not so free to disregard the tradition of their churches, of course. I must add, however, that we Protestants have much to learn from the wisdom of those who have gone before us. Too often we reject human traditions that God has used for centuries and that can enrich our relationship with Him.
What are the Advent colors and what do they mean?
The primary Advent color is purple (or dark blue). It signifies royalty (the coming birth of the King) and seriousness or penitence. Pink is a secondary Advent color, representing the joy of the season. The green of the Advent wreath signifies life, and especially new life that comes through the Savior.
The typical secular colors of Christmas (red, green, white) are not primary Advent colors. Some churches are quite strict about limiting the liturgical colors of Advent to purple and, perhaps, pink. Other churches, like mine, follow a more hybrid option. The focus of our Advent recognition is the wreath, with its purple and pink candles. We also use purple paraments (cloths on the communion table and pulpit). But our sanctuary decorations include some more typical Christmas colors as well.
If I want to begin to celebrate Advent, what should I do?
Let me point you to a couple of posts from past years. These will help you with some of the specifics of Advent: |
|
| |
Last year I started my own Advent tradition, putting up an Advent tree in the large window of my office at church. It is a typical fir tree, with all purple lights. The ornaments are mostly purple, with a handful of pink scattered in.
|
Growing Closer to God in Advent: Some Practical Suggestions
My Greatest Advent Discovery
If you'd like to begin to celebrate Advent, let me point you to a couple of my recent posts (December 3; December 10). Be sure to use the virtual Advent wreath that goes with these posts! Also, you can use my online Advent calendar (at the top of my homepage) to focus your prayers in an Advent direction.
Posts for 2005
Happy New Year! Again?
Part 1 of series: Advent and the Christian Year (2005)
Posted for Sunday, November 27, 2005
Happy New Year! That's right, Happy New Year!
No, no, I'm not one of those people who rushes the holidays, who puts up Jack O' Lanterns while it's still blazing in September and who starts playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving. So I'm not rushing to get you to sing Auld Lang Syne or anything like that. And, no, I didn't fall on my head while putting up Christmas lights. And, no, I'm not hung over from an overdose of L-Tryptophan in my Thanksgiving turkey. Don't worry. I'm quite aware that we're still in 2005, and that we haven't even celebrated Christmas yet.
If you've been reading my blog for over a year, you may remember a similar post last year at this time. Why am I repeating myself? Because a small part of my mission in life is to raise awareness of what we call the Christian year. And for those of us who pay attention to such things, Sunday, November 27, 2005, is the beginning of a new year. So I'll say it again: Happy New Year!
If you’re a member of a highly liturgical church (Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Orthodox, etc.), what I’ve just said makes sense. But if you're not involved in such a church, I had better explain what I'm talking about. |
|
| |
No, it's not time for
Happy New Year hats.
|
The Christian year, sometimes called the church year or the liturgical year, is a centuries-old way that many Christians have ordered the 365-day year. It depends, not on the positions of the sun and moon, or on the start and end of school, but on key aspects of the life of Christ that are coordinated with the solar calendar. The key days in the church year are Christmas (December 25), Good Friday and Easter (in the spring, dated according to Jewish Passover), and Pentecost (seven weeks after Easter). Every other special day or season fits around these crucial days (Advent, Epiphany, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Palm Sunday, Holy Week, Maundy Thursday, etc.).
When I have taught worship leaders from around the country, I have often asked about their awareness of the liturgical year. The vast majority have little or no knowledge of it, apart from the big holidays, Christmas and Easter. If they have any sense of the liturgical year, they assume that its something for Catholics and other high church folk, with little relevance for the rest of us.
I can understand this perspective because I was raised in a church that recognized Christmas, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter, but that’s about it. I had always assumed that things like Lent were for my Catholic friends. And since Lent seemed to involve some sort of fasting, I was happy to leave it well enough alone. Give me the feasts, I reasoned. Leave the fasts for the Catholics and Jews. (I didn’t have any sense of Ramadan back then.)
It wasn’t until I was preparing for ordained ministry that I gained some exposure to the Christian year. I learned – much to my surprise – that many Presbyterians take this stuff quite seriously. For the first time in my life I heard a Presbyterian pastor get excited about the benefits of the church year for corporate worship and private devotions. I was curious, though I didn't quite get his enthusiasm. What difference would the liturgical year make in my life? The answer seemed to be: none at all.
When I came to Irvine Presbyterian Church as Senior Pastor, the church already recognized more of the liturgical year than I ever had before. In the last fourteen years I have grown to appreciate the richness that such a perspective can bring to the worship life of a church, as well as to my own devotional life. The truth is, all kidding aside, that I actually have begun to experience the first Sunday of Advent (in late November or early December) as the beginning of a new year. Today I can feel the flow that begins now and carries me and my church through the birth of Jesus to his death and resurrection, and beyond to the sending of the Spirit and the celebration of Christ's kingly reign. Believe it or not, today I'm beginning my celebration of Easter. I know this may sound odd to you, even esoteric and weird. But I've found that recognizing the Christian year has enriched my faith in many ways. I'd like to share some of these with you.
Now, let me hasten to add that nothing in Scripture demands such a practice. Although the liturgical year is structured around the biblical story of Jesus, it is not prescribed in Scripture in the way of the Jewish holidays in the Old Testament. Of course Christians aren’t commanded to celebrate Easter or Christmas in the way we do either. The church year, therefore, is not something all Christians must observe, or must observe in the same way. (In fact, Orthodox believers have a different pattern throughout the year and even celebrate Easter on a different day!) But I believe that an awareness of the liturgical year can enrich our worship and spirituality. In fact, when I’ve taught on this subject to worship leaders who have very little idea of what I’m talking about, they come away excited about the potential for their churches.
In 2004 I wrote a seven-part series called Advent and the Christian Year. I'm not going to reproduce this year everything I wrote then. I'll refer to portions of last year's series that are relevant to this year. This year I plan to focus more narrowly on the meaning of Advent and what it might mean for you to honor this wonderful season of the Christian year. Tomorrow I'll write more specifically about the meaning and purpose of Advent.
The Advent Wreath: The First Candle
Part 2 of series: Advent and the Christian Year (2005)
|
