CatholicPhilly.com presents a four-week series on Advent from our partner, Catholic News Service.
Advent begins Sunday, Nov. 27 as Catholics look toward the liturgical season of preparation and expectation, of promise and hope.
Advent offers a chance to re-engage with those we love and joyfully prepare for the Christmas season. Just as the prophets in the Old Testament announced the coming of the Lord, the readings at Mass and family traditions help to prepare our hearts and minds for the Messiah’s first coming, while looking still toward the second.
Start a new family tradition this Advent: In an age where we can get almost everything we want in an instant, Advent is wonderfully old-school. It’s a four-week pause amid the chaos of the Christmas season to think about the true Light of the World.
Work hard to prepare the way — it is worth it: The human race had been waiting even longer for the Messiah’s first coming than his second. His mission to immerse us in the power and wisdom of God, to make us new people, is worth preparing for.
Advent has changed with the centuries but its focus remains on Christ: Since its fourth-century origins in Western Europe, the season of Advent has undergone various configurations. Yet it still directs our hearts and minds to the return of the risen Christ into our world.
Share this story