Advent 2007

Come and See: Preparing and Sharing
Advent at St. Peter's

What is Advent?

         Advent is a time of preparation.  Through the scripture we share, the shift in rhythm of our worship, the mediations we’ll read, and the gatherings we’ll share—the time before Christmas is meant to be a time of preparation.          The various elements of our Advent rhythm are meant to help us prepare and sing the words of that old hymn, Come thou long expected Jesus….born to set thy people free…

         Advent prepares us to see God present, tangible, involved in our lives and world.  God doesn’t turn away from us, but in the very nature of the infant birth, God is present in the messiness of life.  Advent prepares us to receive God in Jesus Christ again and again as the child to become a savior.  Advent also prepares us to see, hear, and know the hope that God will come again to usher in the hope and promise of faith we hold.

           So come and prepare with us...There are lots of opportunities to share described here and with more detail below.

‡ Come & See: a compilation of reflections and Advent meditations written to companion scriptures for each day of the season.

‡ Advert Family Events on December 1^st.

‡ Sunday Intergenerational Gatherings: every Sunday we share in special gatherings to share our faith journey with all the generations of the church.

‡ Monday Reflections: Come for a quiet hour of prayer set within a Scripture meditation and reflection.  5pm in the Church.

‡ Advent Trolley Ride: See the lights, laugh and sing.  Dec. 14, save the date.

‡ Parish Work Days: lend a hand to clean house as an exercise to prepare ourselves.

‡ Worship, Worship, Worship: as Anglicans we mark and demonstrate the realities of our faith, first and foremost, in worship.

     Christmas has increasingly become a holiday cut off from its purpose of celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. It is, therefore, important for Christians to recapture the season of Advent as a time for preparing for Christmas.
     Advent comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning "coming." Advent begins the church year, starting four Sundays before Christmas. The season of Advent has been set aside as a time of preparation for Christmas since at least the last half of the 6th century.
     Advent is a time for self-examination and asking for forgiveness as the church is preparing for Christ’s Second Coming even as it prepares for Christmas. This is why the color of the season is purple, which also is used for marking the season of Lent, the season of self-examination preceding Easter. The third week in Advent is set aside as more celebratory than the others. Rose is the color of this week rather than purple to mark the week, which is why a rose candle is used in Advent wreaths.