By Tom Hook
December 1, 2024
Advent: What Does It Mean?
In Christianity, Advent refers to the period of four weeks leading up to Christmas. It begins on the Sunday closest to November 30 and ends on December 24. It is a time of anticipation and preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus on Christmas Day.
The word “Advent” is derived from the Latin word adventus, which means “coming” or “arrival,” which translates to the Greek word parousia. Parousia means: . . . present presence, a being present, a coming to a place; presence, coming or arrival. 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. 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. The Advent season was not explicitly linked to Christ’s first coming at Christmas until the Middle Ages.
Different Christian denominations may have variations in how they observe Advent, but here are some common traditions and practices associated with the holiday season:
Advent Wreath: Lighting candles on an Advent wreath is a common practice. The wreath typically has four candles, each representing one of the four weeks of Advent. A new candle is lit on each Sunday leading up to Christmas.
- First Week, Candle of Hope
- Second Week, Peace Candle
- Third Week, Joy Candle
- Fourth Week, Love Candle
Advent Calendar: Many families and churches use Advent calendars to count down the days until Christmas. These calendars often have small doors or pockets that conceal a treat or a small item to be opened each day in December. These Advent Calendars have become quite consumerized over the past few decades anticipating when Santa is coming with his pile of gifts.
Prayer and Reflection: Advent is a time for spiritual reflection and prayer, using this season to prepare our hearts for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. Some churches may have special Advent prayer services or devotional guides for personal reflection.
Acts of Kindness and Charity: Advent is also seen as a time of giving and helping others. Many Christians engage in acts of kindness, charity, or volunteer work during this season.
Currently, this is not meant to be a “penitential” season like Lent, but a season of hope and anticipation.
There are a number of other Celebrations and Festivals to mark this time of the year.
Hanukkah Dec. 25 – Jan. 2
Every winter Jewish families gather to light a branched candelabra called a menorah. For eight nights they celebrate with their families and celebrate their faith. The holiday is called Hanukkah and is also known as the Festival of Lights. When we think of Hanukkah we think of the menorah its eight Flames that burn in Testament to a glorious victory that took place over 2,000 years ago around 200 BC.
During the holiday and, though not traditionally a holiday for gifts, Hanukkah’s proximity to Christmas has made it customary to exchange gifts on one or all of the eight nights for Jews around the world. Hanukkah is a time to reflect on the strength and spiritual resolve of the Jewish people.
Winter Solstice / Yule
December 21st
Winter solstice is the shortest day and the longest night of the year. Traditionally, it is a time of both foreboding and expectancy, as the longest night leads to the return of the sun. “Solstice” in Latin means “the sun standing still.”
The Winter Solstice has become important to both humanists and pagans, who can find common ground in celebrating this occasion. Themes can include light amid darkness; the death of nature and the cycle of life; the darkness just before the dawn; the miracle of every birth.
Christmas Day
Traditional Birthdate of Jesus of Nazareth
Kwanzaa – Dec. 26 – Jan 1
Kwanzaa is a week-long celebration (). The celebration honors African heritage in African-American culture, culminating in a feast and gift-giving. Kwanzaa has seven core principles (Nguzo Saba). It was created by Maulana Karenga, and was first celebrated in 1966–67.
The seven candles (Mishumaa Saba): These represent the seven principles of Kwanzaa – unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.
Commonality of the Celebrations
What Wisdom Do These Celebrations Offer?
What wisdom do these celebrations of light offer us during the darkest time of the year? This season teaches us resilience, finding light in the darkness, and the power of community.
Mystics speak of the “spark of the soul” that never fades—the birth of divinity as a child of light, which each of us carries within.
This season invites intimacy, connection, and listening “with the ear of the heart” (St. Benedict).
We invariably wonder how things can be both deeply connected and yet clearly distinct. With the endless diversity in creation, it’s clear that our Creator is not?at all committed to uniformity but instead desires unity—which is the great work of the Spirit—or diversity united by love.
Uniformity is mere conformity and obedience to law and custom; whereas spiritual unity is that very diversity embraced and protected by an infinitely generous love. ?
“Nothing can stop the flow of divine love; we cannot undo the eternal pattern even by our worst atrocities. Love will finally win in the end. Nothing humans can do will stop the relentless outpouring force that is the divine of Love. Love will not lose in the end.” Rohr
The Soul Matters Dec. Theme: Being Present to the Presence
Question: Are we capable of being “Present” to the Moment that is right in front of us? Being Present to the miracle of the Presence offered to us?
What do we mean by the present moment?
In an essay titled “The Present Moment” (Tricycle, Winter 2014), Buddhist, Jack Petranker, founder of the Center for Creative Inquiry, provides four distinct approaches to apprehending the present moment.
Therapeutic Presence
This, is simply letting go of the past and future, so that we don’t have to be consumed by regret or worry, nor by reliving or anticipating. As a result, we can quell desire and judgment. Petranker, quotes Marcus Aurelius: “If you separate from . . . everything you have done in the past, everything that disturbs you about the future . . . and apply yourself to living the life that you are living—that is to say, the present—you can live all the time that remains for you until your death in calm, benevolence, and serenity.” For me, easier said than done!
Joyful Presence
The second approach to the present moment is “joyful presence.” Petranker defines it as cultivating a “full appreciation of the rich experience available in each moment.” Again, Marcus Aurelius, “Focus on the process and treat all tasks with the utmost care. Remember that life is short, and let that reality motivate you to live well. The present moment is the most precious thing a person has.”
Mindful Presence
The third approach in apprehending the present moment is “mindful presence,” which Petranker calls a “presence that remembers.” This remembering means to remember “what has value, what matters most,” a sort of priority-setting that serves as a context for present awareness and attention. In fact, mindful presence might seem to take us out of the realm of present-moment attention entirely. This sort of mindfulness has something larger to offer us. Mary Oliver treads similar ground in her poem, “Mindful,” which she begins by saying “Every day I see or hear something that more or less kills me with delight.”
At first, she seems to be focusing more on a joyful presence than a mindful one, but by the end of her poem she refers to growing “wise with such teachings as . . . the untrimmable light of the world, the ocean’s shine, the prayers that are made out of grass,” which—one hopes—embrace memories as much as experience.
Petranker concludes by saying that “The present moment is choosing in this very moment how we make sense of the world (mindful presence).”
Active Presence
Petranker does not stop there, however, but offers a fourth and more transcendent way of “practicing attention in the present moment.” He calls this “active presence.” It’s a matter, he says, of “choosing how to act in this moment,” embracing all three of the other kinds of present-moment attention:
- “In therapeutic presence, you actively choose where to focus your attention.
- In joyful presence, you actively choose how to react to your experience.
- In mindful presence, you actively choose how to make sense of your experience” an “open-ended engagement with experience,” he says,
- In active presence “puts everything into play.”
Petranker then invites his readers to take the “present-moment plunge” or “plunging oneself into the totality of the world”. He describes this commitment as the heart of active presence, of “being here now,” of having “fearless presence” with “total involvement, holding nothing back.”
Petranker concludes by saying “When we engage the present, we engage the whole of our lives. When we plunge into the world, we accept the whole of what is.”
I want to conclude with song written by https://youtu.be/W34dpZICNFc
Plowshare Prayer | Spencer LaJoye Cover | Damien Riehl + Friends (6 min) Permission granted 11/14/24 As we venture out into this uncertain world this “Season of darkness and lights”, I pray that you will find moments each day to be Present to the Presence which is all around us. And…I pray that you are heard.
