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Living Liturgically: Creating a Domestic Church
Special Days in December
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In fact, we could consider the evening before the First Sunday of Advent as Catholic New Year’s Eve.
Throw a party! We do, here at home: just a special meal and a special dessert to acknowledge the last day of our liturgical year. Cheers!
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When does Advent start? It always starts four Sundays before Christmas because there are four Sundays of Advent.
So, for 2021, Advent starts November 28.
To start, we might want to think of Advent as a liturgical season separate from Christmas-time, even though Advent is a time to prepare the arrival of the Son of God. Indeed, during Advent, we are waiting with joyful anticipation of Jesus’s birthday: the coming of the Christ.
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However, during Advent (and increasingly, even right after Hallowe’en), we are inundated with
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Christmas décor,
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Christmas material goods,
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Christmas music,
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Christmas movies,
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Christmas-based news,
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Christmas blog posts and memes,
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Christmas-themed magazines,
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Christmas parties,
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even Santa Claus sightings (how does he do it all???)
all before…. Christmas.
We might be accustomed to this secular practice. But it deprives us of experiencing Advent properly, a time that the Church has set apart for us especially as preparation for Christmas.
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By withdrawing from “Christmas” during Advent (as much as we can), we will be able to immerse ourselves in the anticipation of Christ’s birth, and not be already immersed in “Christmas” itself for many weeks up until the 25th. At which point, we might find ourselves already tired of “Christmas.”
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But what does it mean to anticipate Christmas? How do we prepare for Christmas?
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I’m so glad you asked. Read on.
How can our Domestic Churches live the season of Advent?
The season of Advent begins the Church’s new liturgical year. We restart the Catholic calendar.
THE ADVENT WREATH
This little Advent decoration will remind you throughout this season that we are waiting for Christmas. The ritual of lighting the candles at home imitates the lighting of the Advent candles at church during Mass. With this simple act, you are one step into creating a domestic church.
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Construct an Advent wreath for your home, in a central area (the kitchen table?). You can use greenery, you need four candles (three purple, one pink), and matches. Arrange these as you wish. It can be really simple. Here’s a cute 5 minute video from Catholic blogger and author Kendra Tierney about setting up a simple wreath.
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Holy Redeemer’s Knights of Columbus Council sells Advent candles every year! Make life easy for yourself and support your Knights by purchasing a set for $10 (while they last!).
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Light one of the candles each Sunday of Advent. First Sunday, a purple one. Second Sunday, the next purple candle. The pink candle is for Gaudete Sunday, or “pink Sunday”, the Third Sunday of Advent. On the Fourth Sunday of Advent, light the last purple candle.
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Some people like putting a white pillar candle in the centre of their wreath, to light Christmas day.
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You can pray a special prayer before lighting each candle to increase your prayer life and to immerse yourself in living liturgically. Here’s a ritual of prayer you could follow with your family as you light a new candle every Sunday. The prayers speak of our waiting for Jesus, of our getting ready in our hearts and souls for Him. The prayers are another way to remind us of how special Advent is as a season of preparation and anticipation of Christmas, and not Christmas, yet!
ADVENT HYMNS & CHRISTMAS HYMNS
There is a difference, my friends. There are hymns of anticipation of the Christ. And then there are Christmas hymns.
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Here’s a quick quiz for you! Try to identify which of the following are Advent hymns, and which are Christmas hymns.
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O Come O Come Emmanuel
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Silent Night, Holy Night
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O Come Divine Messiah
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O Little Town of Bethlehem
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Come Thou Long Expected Jesus
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Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
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On Jordan’s Bank
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Joy to the World
(Hint: Odd numbers list Advent hymns).
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Here’s a short post that provides a handful of Advent music videos to get your own Advent playlist going.
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If possible, in your home, play Advent music during Advent, and Christmas music during Christmas. You can search for paylists on Spotify or YouTube for specifically “Christian Advent hymns.” Listen to the words. See how they anticipate the coming of the Christ. And immerse yourself in the season as a season of waiting. Not Christmas, yet!
(But for goodness sakes, listen to Christmas music if it makes you happy!).
LOOKING FOR MORE?
Perhaps you already have an Advent music playlist and light a family Advent wreath at home every year? Here are a few ideas to immerse yourself more deeply:
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How about living Advent as a mini-Lent? In our home, we abstain from sweets and treats and dessert in anticipation of all the celebratory meals during Christmas.
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Refrain from shopping on the Sundays of Advent.
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Decorate your home for Christmas slowly over the weeks of Advent. For example, add a little more of your Christmas decorations to your home each Sunday. Decorating slowly can create a sense of excitement and build-up towards Christmas, again emphasizing the “waiting” that is Advent. Growing up, we didn’t decorate until Christmas Eve, tree included!
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Choose a spiritual exercise to your Advent preparations that will draw you closer to the Lord. Maybe you would like to read the Psalms? Or follow a daily Advent reflection as a spiritual exercise? Here is a small book you might wish to read – a daily reflection for the season of Advent.
HUGE LIST OF WEBSITES FOR ADVENT ACTIVITIES
Do you have children at home? Check out this organized list of Advent activities for your domestic church members.
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A FINAL REFLECTION
The point of Advent is not to become overwhelmed with Christmas, or even with Advent. It’s a beautiful season to carve out time in our day to be still, to listen to Him, to wait with joyful anticipation for His coming. Put aside something else that occupies your days that is not essential and fill it with prayerful waiting so that your heart, and the hearts of everyone in your domestic church, are ready to receive Him into your homes on Christmas day.
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