Advent: A Season of Light and Waiting

Advent is the beginning of the Christian liturgical calendar and marks a season of deep reflection in anticipation of the Advent, or arrival of God in Jesus of Nazareth.  While traditions vary around the world, Advent is always a four-week period prior to the celebration of Christmas on December 25, observing the date of Jesus’ birth.  Each week is important to the Advent season of expectant waiting, and although the selection and arrangement of themes can vary, typically Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love are commonly explored during Advent.  From focused worship, prayer, and scripture readings, to Advent wreaths and calendars, these community practices share a heightened anticipation for God’s arrival. More than a countdown to Christmas, Advent embraces Jesus’ teachings and encourages hopeful action, courageous peace-making, resilient joy, and self-giving love. 

As an Episcopal school steeped in heritage and tradition, Advent is an important season for our community.  This year, Advent falls between November 30 and December 25, which means students enter the Advent season upon their return from Thanksgiving break. To encourage our community into this quiet and reflective time while the world rushes around us, we integrate intentional Advent practices.  Every day, our community is invited to participate in our own Advent calendar featuring the stained glass windows of St. Mary’s.  Additionally, we light the four candles of our Advent wreath each time we gather for chapel between now and Christmas break, and we light the Christ candle before our pageant begins.  In a school setting, the mystery of this season unfolds amid traditions, final lessons, and exams. At Chatham Hall, celebrations of the season are woven through moments like Decoration Day, Senior Night in the Well, Lessons and Carols, and our cherished annual Christmas Pageant, all with the backdrop of the meaning that Advent brings.

As we celebrate our Episcopal heritage, may we pause to notice the anticipation that frames this season. Chaplain Beth Barksdale reminds us that the roots of Advent run deep beneath the Christian Church in the earth and its seasons.  In its historical origins, the season of Advent was patterned after the season of Lent, a six-week period of preparation for Easter observed during the lengthening of days in spring.  Similarly, the four weeks of Advent present an opportunity for communal discernment as we look with hope through the longer days of winter. No matter one’s faith tradition, Advent invites us to engage one another and the world we share with the hope of an adventus, a coming, when light begins to fade.   

As I’ve often heard it described, Advent is like sitting in a dark room with a single light, waiting and hoping for more light to come. Even if it feels like you are holding only a tiny tea light in the vast darkness, hold onto your faith and lean into hope. Christmas is coming, and it is far more than presents or consumerism. It is a season of promise, of light, and of the enduring hope that guides us all.