Prepare for Christmas

Advent is Latin for “The Arrival” While Lent is a time of preparing ourselves for the Death and Resurrection of Jesus and Advent is a time of preparing ourselves for the Coming of the Savior.

It has only been since the invention of the printing press in 1450. The very first book to be produced by Gutenberg was a Bible. Guttenberg produced a revolution. Just 75 years later in 1518 Luther sent his 95 statements to the bishop, Fr. John Staupitz, who took them to the Pope and the Reformation began.

One of Luther’s’ greatest contributions was to translate the Bible into the common language of the people. Leaders and laity could read scripture themselves. Before this the masses certainly could not read and many priests had only a rudimentary knowledge of it. So, for over 1500 years communication of the good news was made difficult by the fact that people could not read.

How would you teach the truths about God, Jesus, salvation, grace, the trinity, the virgin birth, etc? Before this, most priests and Brothers knew little. The Ten Commandments, 12 Apostles, Lord’s Prayer and the 23rd Psalm. A few might know the Apostles’ Creed.

Other ways to teach came with songs, stained glass windows, plays, reenactments and rituals in worship. In my trips to Russia I learned that the Eastern Orthodox Church developed stringent rules about their physical movements. They always crossed themselves from to bottom and left to right. The pinkie finger and the ring finger were always pressed against the hand to represent that Jesus was fully God and fully man. The other three fingers represent the Trinity.

An Advent celebration was one way to teach the people about God, Jesus, Mary, the virgin birth, angels, prophets, the trinity, etc. In the 4th Century a Pope developed a six week period of teaching the various aspects leading up to the Mass of Christ: Christmas.

It was meant to prepare the people for that great high mass. It was a time of daily reflection, repentance, thoughtfulness and humility. People could remember the rituals, candles, songs and actors even if they could not read about them personally. The next time you drive through a live crèche scene remember that this idea came about some 1600 years ago as a way to keep you focused on the meaning of Christmas.

Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.

Tradition lives in conversation with the past, while remembering we are where and when we are and that it is we who have to decide.

Traditionalism supposes that nothing should ever be done for the first time, so all that is needed to solve any problem is to arrive at the supposedly unanimous testimony of this homogenized tradition.

Jaroslav Pelikan

The liturgical year was one way to teach people about the mighty acts of God, so celebrate them this year.