From the Pastor

Another Advent is upon us. Another opportunity to prepare for Christmas and Christ’s. Jesus has already come into the world, nevertheless, in Advent the Church invites us to renew our desire for the Lord more deeply into our lives, and to renew our desire for Christ’s triumphant second coming into the world. Advent is a season in the Church’s life intended to renew the experience of waiting, and longing, for the Messiah. Advent is the time we prepare for Christmas, the day we remember Jesus Christ being born into the world. Preparations are practical, like decorating a tree or stringing lights, but they’re also intended to be spiritual. During Advent, we’re invited to enter more frequently into silence, into prayer and reflection, into Scripture, and into the sacramental life of the Church, for example by celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation, all to prepare for celebrating Christmas. Here are some common questions about Advent. What does the word Advent mean? Advent comes from the Latin ad-venire, which means, essentially “To come to,” or “to come toward.” Ad-venire is the root of the Latin “Adventus” which means “arrival.” So Advent is the season of arrival: The arrival of Christ in our hearts, in the world, and into God’s extraordinary plan for our salvation. So, it’s like four weeks long? Advent is a slightly different length each year. It starts four Sundays before Christmas. But because Christmas is on a fixed date, and could fall on different days of the week, Advent can be as short as three weeks and a day, or as long as four weeks. And, Advent wreaths. Where do they come from? Is it true that they’re just pagan wreaths borrowed by the Church? The Catholic Church has been using advent wreaths since the Middle Ages. Lighting candles as we prepare for Christmas reminds us that Christ is the light of the world. And the evergreen boughs remind us of new and eternal life in Christ. It is definitely true that Germanic people were lighting up candle wreaths in wintertime long before the Gospel arrived in their homeland. That a Christian symbol emerged from that tradition is an indication that the Gospel can be expressed through the language, customs, and symbols of cultures that come to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord.