Tis The Season .. But What Is Advent?
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| Photo Credit: www.SantaFeChurch.org |
So it is the 19th of December, and we are nearing THE DAY (aka the
day in which we celebrate the Savior of the world being born), and I have seen
the word Advent more than ever this year! It seems to have become trendy
overnight, and the “calendars” can get up there in price. Admittedly, I have
never celebrated the days leading up to Christmas in any particular fashion,
but wanted to share with you all exactly what it is.
The following was taken from Christianity.com, and written by Justin Holcomb.
The following was taken from Christianity.com, and written by Justin Holcomb.
WHAT IS ADVENT?
What
Is Advent?
For many Christians unfamiliar
with the liturgical year, there may be some confusion surrounding the meaning
of the Advent season. Some people may know that the Advent season focuses on
expectation and think that it serves as an anticipation of Christ’s birth in
the season leading up to Christmas. This is part of the story, but there’s more
to Advent.
The
History of Advent
The word “Advent” is derived
from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming,” which is a
translation of the Greek word parousia. Scholars believe that
during the 4th and 5th centuries in Spain and
Gaul, Advent was a season of preparation for the baptism of new Christians at the January
feast of Epiphany, the celebration of God’s incarnation represented by the
visit of the Magi to the baby Jesus (Matthew 2:1), his baptism in the Jordan River
by John the Baptist (John 1:29), and his first miracle at Cana (John 2:1). During this season of preparation,
Christians would spend 40 days in penance, prayer, and fasting to prepare for
this celebration; originally, there was little connection between Advent and
Christmas.
By the 6th century,
however, Roman Christians had tied Advent to the coming of Christ. But the
“coming” they had in mind was not Christ’s first coming in the manger in
Bethlehem, but his second coming in the clouds as the judge of the world. It
was not until the Middle Ages that the Advent season was explicitly linked to
Christ’s first coming at Christmas.
Advent
Today
Today, the season of Advent
lasts for four Sundays leading up to Christmas. At that time, the new Christian
year begins with the twelve-day celebration of Christmastide, which lasts from
Christmas Eve until Epiphany on January 6. (Advent begins on the Sunday that
falls between November 27th and December 3rd each year.)
Advent symbolizes the present
situation of the church in these “last days” (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2), as God’s people wait for the
return of Christ in glory to consummate his eternal kingdom. The church is in a
similar situation to Israel at the end of the Old Testament: in exile, waiting
and hoping in prayerful expectation for the coming of the Messiah. Israel
looked back to God’s past gracious actions on their behalf in leading them out
of Egypt in the Exodus, and on this basis they called for God once again to act
for them. In the same way, the church, during Advent, looks back upon Christ’s
coming in celebration while at the same time looking forward in eager
anticipation to the coming of Christ’s kingdom when he returns for his people. In
this light, the Advent hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” perfectly represents the
church’s cry during the Advent season:
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appears.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appears.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
While Israel would have sung the
song in expectation of Christ’s first coming, the church now sings the song in
commemoration of that first coming and in expectation of the second coming in
the future.
Advent
Liturgy and Practice
To balance the two elements of
remembrance and anticipation, the first two Sundays in Advent (through December
16th) look forward to Christ’s second coming, and the last two
Sundays (December 17th – 24th) look backward to
remember Christ’s first coming. Over the course of the four weeks, Scripture
readings move from passages about Christ’s return in judgment, to Old Testament
passages about the expectation of the coming Messiah, to New Testament passages
about the announcements of Christ’s arrival by John the Baptist and the Angels.
While it is difficult to keep in
mind in the midst of holiday celebrations, shopping, lights and decorations,
and joyful carols, Advent is intended to be a season of fasting, much like
Lent, and there are a variety of ways that this time of mourning works itself
out in the season. Reflection on the violence and evil in the world cause us to
cry out to God to make things right—to put death’s dark shadows to flight. Our
exile in the present makes us look forward to our future Exodus. And our own
sinfulness and need for grace leads us to pray for the Holy Spirit to renew his
work in conforming us into the image of Christ.
One catechism describes Advent spirituality
beautifully: “When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, she
makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the
long preparation for the Savior’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent
desire for his second coming. By celebrating the precursor’s birth and
martyrdom, the Church unites herself to his desire: ‘He must increase, but I
must decrease.’”
Advent
and the Christian Life
While Advent is certainly a time
of celebration and anticipation of Christ’s birth, it is more than that. It is
only in the shadow of Advent that the miracle of Christmas can be fully
understood and appreciated; and it is only in the light of Christmas that the
Christian life makes any sense. It is between the fulfilled promise of Christ’s
first coming and the yet-to-be-fulfilled promise of his second coming
that Karl Barth penned these words: “Unfulfilled and
fulfilled promise are related to each other, as are dawn and sunrise. Both are
promise and in fact the same promise. If anywhere at all, then it is precisely
in the light of the coming of Christ that faith has become Advent faith, the
expectation of future revelation. But faith knows for whom and for what it is
waiting. It is fulfilled faith because it lays hold on the fulfilled promise.”
The promise for Israel and the promise for the church is Jesus Christ; he has
come, and he will come again. This is the essence of Advent.
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