Advent season is a time of reflection and anticipation in Christian tradition that usually begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas and ends on Christmas Day. During Advent, there are a variety of activities that help us to commemorate Jesus Christ’s coming into the world and express anticipation for his return.
One common activity of Advent is attending church services throughout the season. Churches often provide special Advent services that focus on the preparation for Christ’s coming. This may include scripture readings, meaningful reflections, and often songs that celebrate Christmas.
Advent calendars are another tradition that is celebrated during this time. Advent calendars most often involve small papers or windows that are opened each day to mark the progression of the season.
Inside these windows are often verses from Scriptures and reminders of the hope that we have of Jesus’ coming.
Throughout Advent, it is also common to light an Advent wreath. This wreath traditionally has four candles surrounding a center candle, with each candle being lit separately during the advent season in either a specific order or all at once.
Lighting the Advent wreath is reminder of the hope that we have in Jesus coming and the joy of Christmas.
Families celebrating Advent may also participate in activities like reading the Christmas Story, baking, decorating the home, and participating in charitable activities. All of these activities expressexpress the hope that we have of preparing for and celebrating Jesus’ coming.
What are the ways to celebrate the season of Advent with friends and family?
One of the best ways to celebrate the season of Advent with friends and family is to set aside time each day to read from a devotional book or bible. This can be a great way to share meaningful conversations about faith and helping others during the holiday season.
Also, consider attending special services or retreats at your local church or other religious centers in the community. Additionally, host an Advent-themed dinner with friends or family. You could make all the traditional dishes served during Advent, such as Braz Krakowskie, a Polish hors-d’oeuvre, as well as dishes specific to your religion or culture.
Settle in for dinner with some reflections on the upcoming holiday season and let the celebration begin! Also, decorate your home or even the whole community. Hang up holiday lights, evergreen branches, and colorful decorations to spread joy and anticipation.
Special Advent calendars are a great way to countdown the days until Christmas, and light a candle on each Sunday of Advent. Finally, another great way to celebrate Advent is to participate in a neighborhood “giving tree” or charitable event.
Pick up a few gifts for those in need and bring joy to others.
What are some things your family can do during Advent to prepare for Christmas?
Some of these activities include decorating the home with festive decorations, such as lights, wreaths, and garlands; gathering around a decorated Christmas tree to sing carols and enjoy holiday snacks; preparing traditional Christmas dishes; wrapping presents; and writing cards to family and friends.
The family can also attend local holiday events, such as church plays, bazaars, or Christmas concerts. Finally, your family can spend time reading and reflecting on the Christmas story, making Jesus the focus of the Christmas season.
How can we do Advent at home?
Doing Advent at home can be a great way to bring the spirit of this special season into your home. Here are some ideas for how to celebrate Advent there:
1. Create an Advent calendar & countdown together: Make an Advent calendar to count down to Christmas on December 25th. This can be done with a paper advent calendar, or by using an app or website to count down.
Have your family members add an activity to the calendar each day like baking cookies, going for a walk in nature, making a snowman, or writing a Christmas card.
2. Read a Christmas story or sing a carol each night: Find a special story or carol that your family enjoys and read or sing it together each night of Advent. This is a great way to build anticipation and focus on the reason for the season.
3. Do a service project together: During Advent, search for a service project to do together as a family. It could be something like volunteering at a local food pantry, donating food and supplies to a shelter, or making cards to send to people in need.
4. Hang an Advent wreath in your home: An Advent wreath is a great way to decorate your home and mark the passage of the liturgical year. Every Sunday in Advent you can light the candles and discuss the meaning behind the wreath.
5. Use a Nativity set: A Nativity set helps focus our hearts and minds during Advent. Place the figures of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds and animals in a special place. Add figures or changes each week to tell the story of Jesus’ birth.
By celebrating Advent with your family at home, you can make memories that will last long after the festive season has ended.
How do we celebrate Advent for kids?
Celebrating Advent with kids is a wonderful way to help them learn about the Christmas season, leading to their Jesus’s birth. You can involve kids in many traditional Advent activities to help them understand the meaning of the season.
One tradition is to have an Advent calendar. Kids love to open a door and find a surprise each day. Use chocolates, pieces of paper with Bible verses about Jesus’s birth on them, or even a toy for a special surprise.
You can also have an Advent wreath, made with evergreen branches, a candle or three and a star on the top. Lighting one candle every Sunday during Advent is a way to count down the days until Christmas.
Another fun way to include kids in Advent is to have an Advent nature scarab. Have kids look through a window or go into the backyard to look for different nature items and collect them in a jar. Then have the kids decorate the jar and open a gift on Christmas Day to reveal the items collected.
Lastly, have your children make ornaments to hang on the tree or other decorations for the house. Kids love to get creative and make gifts for their loved ones; this is a great way to teach them about love, charity and giving during Advent.
Advent is a great way to incorporate traditions into your family’s Christmas celebration and bring the children closer to Jesus’s birth. Celebrating Advent with kids is both fun and meaningful and can be done in a variety of ways.
What do you eat during Advent?
During Advent, many people focus on eating traditional dishes, such as fish on Fridays or treats like cookies or cakes with a nativity scene pattern or other religious symbols on top. These are typically referred to as Advent Treats and are meant to be enjoyed as a reminder of the start of the Christmas season.
Many people also enjoy classic comfort foods that you usually wouldn’t eat any other time of the year. Dishes such as potato salad, sweet potato casserole, roasted chestnuts, and smoked meats, as traditional recipes from all over the world, can be great for captivating the holiday spirit.
Additionally, many enjoy having traditional Christmas candies, such as hard candy canes and chocolate advent calendars, that represent the countdown to Christmas Day. Other holiday dishes to serve during Advent could include Latkes, which are fried potato pancakes often served during the Hanukkah season, seasonal fruits, Christmas cookies, gingerbread houses, and mincemeat pies.
Beyond food, it is important to remember that Advent is all about reflecting and focusing on the true meaning of Christmas. So why not take the time to pause and enjoy a warm cup of tea, homemade hot cocoa, good conversation and thoughtful music to enhance the anticipation of the upcoming holiday season and birth of Jesus.
What is the traditional color of Advent?
The traditional color of Advent is purple. Purple is the color in the Christian liturgical calendar which represents the four Sundays and weeks leading up to Christmas. It is often seen as a period of sacredness, preparing for and anticipating the arrival of the newborn baby Jesus, symbolizing the mourning and the joy of the coming of a savior who brings God’s salvation.
Purple is the symbolic color of Advent because it is the color associated with mourning and royalty. It is often combined with the color blue, which signifies the expectant anticipation of the coming of the Christ child.
What are the 4 Advent themes?
The four themes of Advent are Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. Each of these themes encourages us to remember that Jesus is coming soon and to focus on being ready to receive him.
Hope: During this season, we are reminded to wait patiently and trust in God’s plan and promises. When we live in hope, we are reminded that Jesus loves us and that He is coming again to save us.
Peace: Advent helps us to turn our thoughts to making peace with those around us. We strive to reconcile relationships, repair our broken world and focus on being peacemakers.
Joy: We celebrate the joy that is found in Jesus and seek to share that joy with others. Joyful obedience and an attitude of thankfulness helps bring joy to our lives.
Love: We focus on abiding in God’s love and living out of that love for others. We remember that Jesus came to save us from our sins and because of that we can rest in His grace and love. By humbly loving each other as He has loved us, we can be messengers of His love.
Why is purple the Colour of Advent?
Purple is the traditional color of Advent because of its use in the Christian Church, dating back to the 4th century. It is used to mark the four weeks in which Christians prepare for the celebration of the birth of Jesus at Christmas.
The color purple is rich and royal, and it represents the royalty and majesty of Jesus. It also symbolizes royalty and spiritual wisdom, as well as penitence and humility. From a spiritual standpoint, the rich purple of Advent is associated with a time of cleansing, fasting, and learning, preparing for the coming of the celebration of Jesus’ birth.
The color purple also inspires humility and repentance, which is especially important during this season. As a symbol of faith, hope, and joy, purple is a color that reminds us to take time in the days leading up to Christmas to reflect on the true meaning of the season and to commit to living out a life of gratitude and service to God.
How do you pray for Advent?
Praying during advent is an important part of the season. Here are some ideas on how to use prayer during Advent:
1. Start with a prayer of thanksgiving to God for sending Jesus into the world. This can be a prayer of gratitude for his unwavering love and mercy, as well as an intentional act of humility.
2. Meditate on the Scriptures. Spend time reading and reflecting on the story of Jesus’s Advent. This can help you reflect on the connection between what Jesus was going through and how you can relate that to your own life.
3. Pray for peace and hope. This season is a time to remember the joy and hope the birth of Jesus brings. Pray for peace each day and for the hope that comes from knowing Jesus so intimately.
4. Pray for loved ones. Pray for the health, safety, and happiness of your friends and family.
5. Pray for your community. Pray for those who are struggling or feeling weighed down by life’s hardships. Ask God to bring peace, restoration, and joy to them.
6. Pray for the Church. Pray for all believers and churches around the world, asking that God’s light may be shared through us.
7. Pray in silence. To be mindful of the significance of Jesus’s coming, consider taking a few moments in silence to offer up simple prayers like, “Jesus, thank you for coming.”
The act of prayer during Advent is a meaningful way to experience the season more deeply and to be mindful of God’s mercy and grace. Praying with intention each day can help prepare your heart for the joy of Christmas.
What should Christians do for Advent?
Advent is an important observance for Christians, a time of preparation and expectancy for the birth of Jesus. During the four weeks leading up to Christmas many Christians participate in a number of activities.
One important practice during Advent is prayer and reflection – a time of spiritual preparation. This could be done alone or in a larger group. If done in a group setting, many Christians like to explore themes such as the birth of Jesus or God’s love in scripture.
Another popular activity during Advent is fasting or abstinence. Many Christians practice a traditional fast on the four Fridays during Advent. This involves abstaining from certain activities such as eating certain types of food, abstaining from intoxicating beverages, or abstaining from certain luxuries in life.
Fasting is viewed by many as a way of focusing on their spiritual life in order to prepare their hearts and minds for the coming of Jesus.
On each of the four Sundays during Advent Christians put in a special effort to remember the hope and joy of Jesus’ arrival. One way of doing this is through Advent celebrations. These events typically involve singing Christmas carols, reading scripture or lighting Advent candles.
It is also customary for many to make a special effort to meet the needs of others during this time as a reminder of Jesus’ love and selfless acts of service.
The spiritual preparation and celebration of Advent provides a unique opportunity to embrace and honor the birth of Jesus in a meaningful way.
What can I put in my Advent calendar without candy?
There are many creative ideas for what you can put in your Advent calendar without candy. Here are some ideas:
1. Toys: small wooden toys, Lego pieces, figurines, and dolls.
2. Stationery: stickers, notebooks, pens and pencils, craft kits, and other office supplies.
3. Puzzles and games: card, board, or jigsaw puzzles, memory and other games, and activity sets.
4. Jewelry: necklaces, bracelets, earrings, pins, and brooches.
5. Beauty: nail polish, lip gloss, face masks, and other beauty supplies.
6. Outdoor activities: glow sticks, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, and beach or camping supplies.
7. Books: age-appropriate books, coloring books, and word searches.
8. Gift cards: to their favorite store or to a local restaurant.
9. Experiences: tickets to a museum, movie, or theater, or vouchers for outdoor activities or games.
What do you fill a homemade Advent calendar with?
A homemade Advent calendar is a wonderful way to get into the holiday spirit and can be filled with many exciting and unique items to make counting down to Christmas extra special. Some popular items to include in a homemade Advent calendar are small candies, festive chocolates, christmas trinkets, special treats, lotions and perfumes, holiday poems or messages, holy cards, keychains, stickers, magnetic bookmarks, and other small gifts.
Adding family traditions, like a special holiday game, special recipe, or family movie night, can be added as well as an exciting (and unique!) way to make sure the holidays are extra memorable. Other fun items to include could be simple festive crafts, notes to do a kind act each day, holiday-themed word search puzzles and coloring sheets, and even simple homemade presents.
Creating a homemade Advent calendar is a great way to share time with family, while also fostering a sense of joy and togetherness during the holiday season.
What goes into an Advent calendar drawer?
An Advent calendar drawer can vary based on what type of calendar it is. Traditional Advent calendars may contain small religious figures, candy or chocolates, or small toys or trinkets such as necklace charms or small figurines.
In some cases the drawers may contain an activity, such as a written holiday activity or equation to solve, a bible verse, or a lucky number. There are also specific Advent calendars that involve items like beer, tea, beauty products, or even gourmet snacks.
These types of Advent calendars may include items such as a different bottle of beer, a different tea bag, a beauty product sample, or a snack item. Ultimately, what goes in an Advent calendar drawer depends on the type of calendar being used.
How do you make a reusable Advent calendar?
Making a reusable Advent calendar is a fun and creative way to add some holiday excitement and anticipation to the lead-up to Christmas.
Firstly, you will need to decide on the materials you would like to use – such as fabric, felt, or paper. Then decide what size would work for you and size your materials and templates accordingly.
Once you have the supplies, it’s time to get creative! You can choose to customize your Advent calendar with festive colors, holiday shapes, numbers, or hand-drawn creations. If you have access to a sewing machine, you can also create a fabric Advent calendar complete with pockets and ornaments.
Next, you will need to decide how to arrange your calendar. Consider groups of four or five bits of fabric or paper, folded, and numbered then glued in place. Pockets can be stitched in between the flaps or gluing the sides.
The final step, once you have your Advent calendar created, is to attach envelopes, bags, or other vessels that can hold little treats or other tokens of Christmas cheer – one for each of the 24 days of Advent.
You can also choose to place tokens or little gifts inside the pockets themselves.
Once your Advent calendar is complete, you can enjoy it every year as it builds in sentimental value and magic season after season.
What is an Advent box?
An Advent box is a small cardboard or wooden container that can act as a way to encourage and celebrate the season of Advent. It typically has 25 compartments, each of which can be filled with treats, toys, or activities that can be opened each day leading up to Christmas.
It is often used as a family tradition for counting down the days until Christmas and creating excitement during the holiday season. Each day, a new item is opened and enjoyed, helping to keep the focus on the true meaning of Christmas – Jesus’ birth and the journey of the Wise Men.
Advent boxes are an easy to way to add a seasonal twist to every day and build anticipation and excitement as the days get closer to Christmas.