The word "Advent" means "arrival" or "coming" (in Latin from the word adventus). Advent celebrates the mystery and the wonder of the first “coming” of Christ Jesus in his birth. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became a person – Incarnation.
Theologically, the Incarnation and the
Trinity belong together. Jesus is God in
flesh, and yet truly human.
John 1:14
(NIV)
14 The Word became
flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the
One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
1 Timothy 3:16 (NIV)
16 Beyond all question, the
mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the
Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in
the world, was taken up in glory.
Advent begins the Christmas season and as well, the Church year for many churches in the western world. Advent is a seasonal celebration, a tradition that goes back through the Church’s history to the early centuries of the church.
For centuries before Christ Jesus’ coming (the first Advent), faithful Jewish believers waited for God to send His Messiah. When Jesus asked his disciples who they believed him to be, Peter answered: “You are the Christ (Messiah), the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:18).
The early church’s teachers saw in Christ’s first Advent a fulfillment of the Older Testament’s prophecies concerning the Messiah’s coming. For the early church, Advent meant not only the celebration of Jesus’ first coming; but also the expectation and waiting for Christ's second coming.
The exact time when the season of Advent came to be celebrated by the church is not precisely known. Church history records that a “feast of the Nativity of Our Lord” was established in the latter part of the 4th century. There are sermons from the 5th century that discuss preparation for celebrating Christ’s birth in a general sense, without indicating there was a season. As the church grew, synods met to discuss the various aspects of seasonal worship. One such synod in 590 set aside three days of fasting each week from November 11th until the Nativity (Christmas Day) as a way of preparing for Christmas worship. Much of the early church’s emphasis concerning Advent had to do with fasting and repentance as a way of preparing for Jesus’ coming. It was around the mid-11th century that Advent was set as a four-week celebration that preceded Christmas. Changes to the celebration of Advent have continued to take place through the centuries, but the four weeks before Christmas have remained.
In our modern context, Advent begins with the fourth Sunday that precedes Christmas day. Because it is defined by that criteria, Advent’s length and time of beginning is different from year to year. It can begin as early as November 27th, or as late as December 3rd, and the number of days varies between 23 and 28 days. My devotional book presumes a 28 day period so that it might be useful in any Advent year.
https://www.amazon.com/Advent-Sojourn-2018-Elliott-Pollasch-ebook/dp/B07KMLTLKS
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