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December 2005, Page 2.
Index of articles:
by subject,
by date.
In this issue:
(December 2005)
Joseph,
Advent candles,
PC nonsense.
Advent Candles
Q. As an ex-Anglican I’m sorry to say I can't remember what Advent candles are all about. Could you enlighten me?
A. Thanks for your honesty, and I must admit that knowing what the word "Advent" means is not the central mark of being a Christian!
"Advent" is the season when the church thinks about the second of Jesus, and looks forward to that time when he will come in power and glory to judge the living and the dead. Traditionally the season takes place before Christmas - for a varying length of time in different churches in different parts of history - but most usually the 4 Sundays immediately before Christmas.
Unfortunately, the fact that it takes place before Christmas usually means that there's a confusion of message, and most people take "Advent" as meaning the time of looking forward to Christmas instead of the time of looking forward to the second coming of Jesus. And so it is with "Advent Candles".
Traditionally an advent candle ring consists of 4 coloured candles (pink or purple) arranged in a ring around a central white one. On the first Sunday of Advent you light just one of the coloured candles. On the second Sunday you light two of them (that's to say, the one you used last week and a next-door one this week). On the third you light three, on the 4th you light 4, and on Christmas Day you light all 5.
The central white candle is for Jesus, the light of the world, and the four coloured ones are for four witnesses who pointed people to the coming of Jesus. Unfortunately there are several different schemes for which candle goes with who. At St Luke’s we’re following the scheme in the “Common Worship: Festivals” book, which has the candles representing:
1. The Patriarchs (i.e. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob),2. The Prophets (i.e. Isaiah, Micah and so on),
3. John the Baptist, and
4. Mary his mother.
This year we will be using bible readings which tie in with these themes, and we may also use an Advent Candle song - a song which has a verse for each candle: so just one verse on the first Sunday, two on the second, and each adds another.
Advent candles really work best in the home, and have only come into churches fairly recently. Why don’t you make some and remind yourself of the light of the world this year?
John Hartley