I know it seems a little early to talk about Advent, but Thanksgiving is only 10 days away, so Christmas will come sooner than it seems. it's roughly 42 days away. that means advent will start in a little less than three weeks.
anyways, all that's to say that i need all the bible buffs to show their face around here. it's your time to shine! i have a question about the season of Advent. is Advent talked about in the bible at all? i know i could probably look it up, but i thought maybe some of you might want to get that natural high from knowing something someone else didn't. if i do get the answer, i'll be sure to post it on here.
the reason i'm asking is because one of the guys at my lunch table wants to know. I asked him today if he knew why his denomination doesn't "do" advent. He seemed to know everything else about his church, so why shouldn't he know that? well, he had no clue what advent was. thankfully, someone was there who could name what the four candles stand for. And between the two of us we tried to explain it to him. then of course he had to go and ask if it was biblical. we couldn't answer that question. but i told him i'd get back to him on that.
so now i guess i'm wonder why some churches do advent and others don't. it's something that's been apart of my holiday season every year for the past 17 years. i honestly think i would feel strange if i didn't do advent. i've never really thought about this before. i guess i'll get to think it through while i'm at work tonight. it's off to the pizza buffet for me!
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9 comments:
Hi, Abby!
Well, your question sparked an interest, because as I was telling you in person, I'm the type of person who wants to know "WHY" . . . and yet now I've been attending a church (for two decades) which does things so much differently than the church I grew up in (as you know!). Personally, although I'll probably never get the chance, it would be interesting to sit with you at your lunch table for these discussions. I have experience on "both sides." And my true heart-felt opinion probably lies somewhere in the middle!
I found a blog at http://advent4evangelicals.blogspot.com/2006/11/advent-faq.html The last part of that page is most interesting, and I agree with her synopsis entirely! --
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8. Okay, so if advent is so great, then why don't all Christians celebrate it?
I'm not completely sure! I think a great deal of it comes from not knowing about it. When the reformation happened and the catholic/protestant church split occurred, many traditions were not carried on out of fear of being under a rule or rote practice. Some protestants were scared of anything that was "too Catholic" and left advent to the side. Sadly, this has continued for generations and is seen today in the evangelical movement as well.
Let's be honest. Some of my wonderful blog friends are Catholic, and some are evangelical, and some are something in between. We're a tad bit *scared* of each other. We aren't quite sure all the doctrinal issues here and there, and we are afraid to say one thing, lest someone doubt our "sincere Christianity." So, in our fear, we are afraid to do anything that might or might not line up with our particular doctrine.
Advent is NOT about that. Advent is about Christ, and Christ alone. Sure, there are some cool things that one family and denomination might put more focus on in the season, but you do what works for you. Let's all agree here on this blog to celebrate JESUS and uplift each other this season.
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I'll be interested to hear comments from others, too. I hope you get some responses (besides my own) for this post!
Love,
Mom
Hey Abby,
Ok so at first I was like what the heck? Than I read what your mom commented, than googled Advent to see what it came up with. (Mainly hopeing for a dictionary def.) And finally put in Wikipedia and they have this picture of candles of the Advent on there. And than I got it. Sorta, see this family at my mom church celebrats it so last year they intruduced it to us. So now I kinda know what you mean lol....Your basically celebrating each Sunday before Christmas. Right?
Catch ya later
~Liz
Coming from the same background as your mom (hi, Tammy :) ), I've always found Advent somewhat mysterious. I was aware of it because of visiting Aunt Kay's church a few times. But all I knew was that it had something to do with Christmas and a wreath with four candles (can never remember whether it's 3 pink and 1 purple or 3 purple and 1 pink. Anyway ...). Until three or four weeks ago, I had no idea what the candles stood for, etc.
But, as for the "is it biblical?" question, I think the blogger Tammy quoted said it well. Even though I've never celebrated Advent (only because it hasn't been part of my "tradition"), I can't help thinking, what could be more biblical than celebrating the birth of our Savior? It's certainly not UNbiblical. Even though the Advent celebration isn't spelled out step by step in Scripture, I would think the principle is there.
All that to say, I agree with the blog post: The important thing is to celebrate Jesus and His birth--to worship Him and thank Him for coming in the first place. That's what is biblical. I don't think the method (Advent or no Advent) matters one way or the other. It's whatever method has the most meaning for the participant.
P.S. Wow, you never know what kind of discussion will come out of a conversation in the car, do you?
So I was thinking about this a little more after I posted the last comment and had a question. Was your friend implying that if there is no scriptural "chapter and verse" for Advent, a person shouldn't celebrate it? Because if he was, that's a really misguided view of the Bible. The Bible isn't meant to be read as a list of dos and don'ts (a rulebook). It's a guidebook---teaching us how to shape our lives after Christ's. Christianity (and Scripture) is about relationship, not about religion or religious practices. And if Advent helps people grow in their relationship with Jesus, then let them celebrate it!
OK, enough. I'll get off my soapbox now and go to bed ... :)
According to this article:
http://www.intermirifica.org/advent/hisad.htm
It seems that Advent was an obscure ritual started a looooong time ago in France and that it just kind of spread. Apparently various Popes changed it gradually from a 40 day fast to the 4-week observance that we have now.
Honestly I dont know what advent is and I dont really feel like knowing. I celebrate Christmas and Christmas only for Christ's birth.
No one special.
Okay my last comment didnt come out right. Sorry if it sounded snobby.
What I meant was that the only HOLIDAY I celebrate Christ's birth on is Christmas. I dont know if advent is considered a holiday or not. But I, of course, celebrate Christ everyday of my life.
Dear Anonymous,
Abby's mom here . . . Advent is not a holiday. Rather, it is considered a time (for those who choose to observe it) to prepare our hearts and minds for the celebration of Jesus' coming. While we don't do anything special in relation to Advent in our home, at church, the four Sundays before Christmas are Advent Sundays, and the entire focus is on preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ. To some, if they are doing it just out of tradition, it may be meaningless. As I've shared with Abby at home, I came from a church background which didn't do a lot with all the traditions of mainline churches, so I've had to think and wonder why we do some of the things we do. But God has been showing me in the past year or so in the Old Testament that He wanted His people to have certain festivals and some traditions, as a reminder of where they had come from, how He protected them along the way, etc. I still have a lot of thinking to do about a lot of liturgical stuff, but I'm beginning to see that it's not all bad. We just need to think about what we're doing when we do it---thinking about the purpose.
As the quoted blog says, the most important thing should be celebrating Jesus, whether or not we observe Advent.
Yeah just so you all know, I dont think there is anything wrong with it. I was just ignorant that it even existed and it sounded strange to me.
No one special.
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