Advent is a season of four weeks including Sundays. Advent derives from the Latin adventus, which means "coming." The season proclaims the comings fo the Christ--whose birth we prepare to celebrate once again, who comes continually in Word and Spirit, and whose return in final victory we anticipate. Each yea Advent calls the community of faith to prepare for these comings; historically, the season was marked by fasts for preparation. Each Sunday of Advent has its distinctive theme:

• Christ's coming in final victory (First Sunday)
• John the Baptist (Second and Third Sundays)
• The events immediately preceding the birth of Jesus Christ (Fourth Sunday)

(The above information comes from The United Methodist Book of Worship. Copyright 1992 The United Methodist Publishing House.)

At Chilhowie UMC, we celebrate Advent in the following ways:

• The First Sunday of Advent is the time for preparation of our worship space. We have a Hanging of the Greens service in the afternoon at the church. Seasonal crafts are made and we get out our Chrismons and put them on our evergreen tree. At the end of the activities we close with a potluck soup and sandwich supper.
• During the Season of Advent, we also light the Advent wreath each Sunday with readings to help focuse our thoughts for the day.
• At some point during the Advent Season, our chancel choir typically presents a cantata to help us better understand the season.
• It is during Advent, that we get out the bath robes and dress up our children as shepherds and wise men during a traditional Children's Christmas program.
• To help us remember others, we have also put up what we call our Advent sock and underwear tree in the fellowship hall. We take donations of socks and underwear for use at the local elementary school.

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