2023-11-29 04:31:59
Advent, Advent, a little light is burning. First one, then two, then three, then four…
Advent is cozy and hectic at the same time. Due to the winter darkness there is plenty of opportunity for reflection in these weeks before Christmas. Holiday preparations are definitely part of it, but they can also cause stress.
To prepare for the wonderful Christmas season, read everything you need to know about Advent here.
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That is the meaning of Advent
Advent is a very special time of year for young and old. This year the first Advent falls on December 3rd. The term Advent comes from the Greek term for “apparition”. This means something like the arrival, presence or visit of a king. In Latin this became adventus Divi, i.e. “arrival of the divine ruler”.
Advent celebrates the wait for Christmas, the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.
For the early Christians (from the 4th century onwards), Advent was a period of fasting between St. Martin’s Day (November 11th) and the day on which the birth of Christ was celebrated (December 24th). Since the 7th century, Advent has been celebrated for four weeks as the so-called tempus ante natale Domini (“time before the birth of the Lord”) or tempus adventūs Domini (“time of the Lord’s arrival”).
Why are there Advent Sundays?
Since Pope Gregory (540-604), the four Sundays of the Western Church have symbolized the four thousand years that, according to the view at the time, people had to wait for the Savior after the Fall.
By the way: The Orthodox Church celebrates Advent for six weeks (November 15th to December 24th).
How we celebrate Advent
Advent, Advent, a little light is burning! First one, then two, then three, then four, then the Christ child is at the door!
Four candles in the middle of fir green are THE Advent symbol! On each of the last four Sundays of Advent before Christmas, one more is traditionally lit.
From December 1st, a new door on countless Advent calendars opens every day. And they are becoming increasingly popular with adults too.
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Stollen and cookies are baked and then given away as gifts and eaten. Houses, gardens and city centers are festively decorated with fairy lights.
And we particularly like to do good: fundraising galas and many charity campaigns collect record amounts for the weak and needy during this time.
Children (and some adults too) listen to Christmas carols, write wish lists and are already looking forward to receiving Christmas presents. Colleagues and friends go out for a cozy meal together during Advent or throw a party.
Finally, we get the tree, delicious food and gifts for all our loved ones and write festive mail to everyone we can’t meet in person
The Advent season is ushered in with a festively decorated wreath
Photo: Peter Mueller BILD
Why is Advent sometimes longer and sometimes shorter?
Advent in the Latin Church lasts 22 to 28 days and always has four Sundays. It begins with the first vespers on the eve of the first Sunday in Advent. It ends on Christmas Eve before the first vespers of Christmas.
Reason for the different length of Advent: The beginning must be on a flexible Sunday. The end, however, has a fixed date: December 24th.
The earliest possible day for the fourth Advent is December 18th. The latest is December 24th. We light the fourth candle on the Advent wreath in the afternoon and the one on the Christmas tree in the evening.
By the way: The Protestant theologian Johann Hinrich Wichern (1808–1881) had the first Advent wreath hung in the prayer room of the “Rauhen Haus” in Hamburg in 1839. A wooden candlestick with a total of 23 candles, 19 small red candles for the working days until Christmas and four thick white candles for Sundays.
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