As we embark on this holy season of Advent, where winter’s barrenness includes trees bereft of leaves, the evergreen of our Advent Wreaths offers us a glimpse of the always-life-giving love of our God in this, as in every season, of the year.
And so, we invite you to share in our making of the Advent Wreath, across our classrooms - the simple but beautiful way to capture the meaning and symbolism of Advent.
The Advent Wreath is a circle of evergreen, having no beginning and no end. This symbolises the fact that God has no beginning and no end. It also reminds us of the unending love of God for us, so that we might have eternal life in Heaven. Using fresh evergreens to make the Wreath has great significance. Jesus came to give us life, and fresh branches are an excellent symbol of life and hope.
Our Advent Wreath contain four candles, one for each week of Advent. There are three purple or violet-coloured candles and one that is pink or rose-coloured. Jesus is the light of the world. Each week, we light a new candle, as we draw ever closer to the coming of Christ at Christmas. By the final week of Advent, all four candles are lit, reminding us that the time to rejoice has finally arrived!
During the first week, we light a purple candle - the Prophet’s Candle - as we focus on the virtue of hope. We acknowledge that Jesus is coming and begin preparing our hearts to welcome Him at Christmas.
Week Two sees us light a second purple candle - the Bethlehem Candle. This candle symbolises peace. We call to mind the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. When they arrived, there was no room at the inn - no room for Jesus. This week is a time to continue drawing closer to Christ so that, when He comes, He may find a home in our hearts. Peace is one of the things that we hope for. Christ brought peace when He first came to us and He will bring everlasting peace when He comes again. We light the candle of peace to remind us that Jesus is the Prince of Peace and that, through Him, peace is found.
On Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent, we celebrate joy and light the rose-coloured candle - the Shepherd’s Candle. On Christmas night, the angels appeared to the shepherds and brought them, as the Gospels tells us, ‘news of great joy!’
The final week of Advent is a time of peace, as we light the third purple candle - the Angel’s Candle. We are mindful of the angels’ announcement of ‘Peace on earth, good will to men!’
This Advent, we pray that we may look out for others, as Pope Francis encourages us. May we use these days and weeks of Advent to share with others, giving, listening, and preparing to welcome Jesus into our hearts, at Christmas.
We thank our teachers and staff for helping us to photograph the journey of our Advent Wreaths and convey a special word of appreciation to Ms O’Rourke for leading us in the compilation of our video.
