Christmas is a season of praise and thanksgiving for the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ, which begins with Christmas Eve or Day and continues through the Day of Epiphany (January 6th). Than name Christmas comes from the season's first service, the Chrst Mass. Epiphany comes from the Greek word epiphania, which means "manifestation." New Year's Eve or Day is often celebrated in the United Methodist tradition with a Convenant Renewal Service.

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

At Chilhowie UMC, we celebrate Season of Christmas in the following ways:

• The season traditionally begins with a candle light communion service on Christmas Eve. Times for this service have varied, but during the last couple of years we have celebrated this service at 9:00 p.m. The service consists of readings and hymns, special music from the choir, a sermon, the celebration of Holy Communion, and then the singing of "Silent Night" as the lights in the worship space are dimmed, and candles are lit.
• We do not celebrate any services on Christmas Day. Also, we do not celebrate a New Year's Eve service. We have ocassionally celebrated a service on Epiphany, if the day falls on a Sunday or Wednesday.

---

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page

---

We would like to hear from you. You can E-mail us at: