Today is First Sunday of Advent

Nov 27, 2016

By Christina I. Hermoso
A Catholic Church leader calls on the faithful “to work together as one nation for the common good” as Christendom marks the First Sunday of Advent today.

“As we wait for His coming, let us be one with our family and friends to experience and to encounter Jesus. Together, let us work as one nation for the common good and share with one another God’s mercy and love. With this, truly, Jesus has come to us and lives in us,” said Balanga (Bataan) Bishop Ruperto C. Santos.

“The liturgical year of the Church begins with Advent. Advent, which means coming, heralds a beginning. It is that brief period (four Sundays) in our liturgical calendar which paves the way for Christmas, the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know that Jesus once came, is coming, and will come again. As we commemorate and celebrate His first coming, let us welcome Him with contrite hearts and a changed life. We also come to Him with clean and good works in our hands as well as kind words from our lips,” Santos added.

Meanwhile, in all Catholic churches across the country today, priests in purple vestments will bless Advent wreaths adorned with four candles.  There will be  three purple candles, which symbolize anticipation and hope, and one pink candle, which symbolizes joy, arranged in a circle of evergreen to symbolize eternal life.

In recent years, an additional white candle, which symbolizes Christ, and which is usually lit during the Christmas Eve mass, has been added to Advent wreaths.

After the reading of a short devotional, one of the three purple candles will be lighted to herald the joyous season of waiting for Christ’s birth as well as to signify that “Jesus is the light of the world.”

From the Latin word “adventus,” which means coming or arrival, Advent marks the beginning of the Church’s liturgical year. Observed on the Sunday following the celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King, Advent is historically known as “little Lent” as it is also a time of repentance, prayer, fasting, and confession.--MB