Advent is one of my favorite times on the church calendar. But when I was growing up, it was little more than the Christmas pre-season, a countdown to the birth of Jesus... and the cool benefits for kids that came with commemorating that event... time off from school, presents, and lots of food. The real meaning of Advent would escape me until I got older.
Advent is sometimes misunderstood. Most people with a traditional church background understand that it’s observed the four Sundays before Christmas, but we don’t always understand the significance of the season. And churches that use the Lectionary are sometimes caught off guard by the passages that reference the second coming of Christ. (“We haven’t even celebrated the first coming yet!”)
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