DVENT The season of
Advent is the period of four weeks prior to Christmas. It is a time Christians set aside to prepare for and anticipate the coming of Christ. The word "advent" means "coming"--referring to the coming of Jesus as foretold by the prophets, to His continual coming into our hearts, and to His future coming at the end times. One Advent custom comes from long ago. Soon after December 25th was established as the date to celebrate the birth of Christ, people felt the need to prepare themselves for the observance of Christmas.
Advent wreaths have been used for centuries for both church and home celebrations. All the parts of the wreath have meaning: the wreath itself is in the shape of a circle, which symbolizes God’s love – like a circle, God’s love has no beginning and no end. The evergreens are symbolic of eternal life, because they are green all year round. The four candles around the outside of the wreath stand for the four Sundays of Advent. Candles represent the One who said, “I am the Light of the world.
The traditional color for Advent wreath candles is purple or violet–purple is a royal color and as such symbolizes the coming King. Purple also represents the humility and penitence we should feel during Advent. Sometimes one pink- or rose-colored candle is used -- “the candle of joy” -- which symbolizes the joy of the coming of the Christ Child. It is lit on “Rose Sunday”, when we particularly remember the Virgin Mary. Often, a white candle is in the center of the wreath in its own candle holder. This candle is the Christ Candle.
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HRISTMAS
VENTS: 
HRISTMAS EVE During these four Sundays leading up to Christmas Eve we sing and worship remembering the events leading up to the birth of Jesus. Then, on that mystical night of Christmas Eve, we gather for a service of Lessons and Carols: a time of worship in scripture reading and song recalling salvation history up to the time of Christ. Lessons and Carols flows into the Christmas Eve Mass; a time of worship and singing of the traditional carols of Christmas.