Saturday, November 29, 2008

Advent Activities To Celebrate the Holiday Season

By Kerry Beck

Advent is a series of days that lead up to the Christmas holiday. The Advent calendar consists of the 24 days prior to Christmas. The term "advent" comes from the Latin word "adventus" which means "coming." This holiday period signifies the coming of Christ.

One way that Advent is prepared for is by use of a device known as an Advent calendar. A simple device, in many cases actually created by children, this device allows the celebrants to track how far they are along in the Advent holiday period.

The typical way the calendar is made is by the use of advent candles. There are 24 candles used to signify the 24 days that precede Christmas, from December 1st to December 24th. When a new day arrives, the family gathers around the advent calendar and lights a candle to signify the progression of the Advent season.

There are a wide variety of designs that make up an Advent calendar. Calendars are most commonly used by children to track the days of the period. One example of an Advent calendar design is a Christmas tree that has 24 candles on different branches of the tree.

Another common advent calendar design is in the form of pockets of candy holders. Each pocket is labeled with a specific number to signify the number of days in Advent. When one of the days arrives, the celebrants remove candy that has been stuffed in the candy holder and eats the candy in celebration.

An advent wreath is another form of preparation for the Advent holiday. Unlike the calendar that tracks each day of the season, the wreath tracks the four weeks of the holiday period. There are four candles that make up the wreath and as each week arrives, a candle is lit to commemorate the arrival of one of the weeks of advent.

In preparing and celebrating the advent holiday days and weeks, celebrants engage in a wide variety of activities. From a religious standpoint, this is a time period where there is much prayer and even fasting in some cases. Priests and Pastors tailor their teachings and sermons to focus on the coming of Christ and what the Christmas holiday is all about. Some worshipers may even decide to sacrifice certain activities such as watching television, listening to certain types of music, etc.

At home, there are a number of Advent activities that can be conducted together as a family. For example, some families have their kids gather together and actually create their own advent calendar or wreath to celebrate the holiday season. Other families have their kids color in special advent themed coloring books that commemorate the holiday season.

Advent is a special time for millions of families all across the world. The decision for how you and your family prepare for it is a personal one. If you need ideas and suggestions, what we have provided here will help give you some ideas as well as help prompt you to come up with your own ideas as to how to celebrate this significant holiday season. - 16492

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