The celebration of Christmas for Christians is such an important part of the
church calendar that it is easy to assume it has always been. But the major
Christian festival for the early church was Easter. Around the fourth century,
Christmas became part of the Christian calendar and by the year 336, December
25 was generally established as the date of Jesus' birth. Soon afterwards,
church leaders began to feel the need for a period of preparation leading up to
the actual celebration of the Christ Child's birth - thus we have the Advent
season.
The observance of the Hanging of the Greens is an old English custom of
decorating one's home with evergreens and other festive trappings for Advent
and Christmas. For all of us here at the Moore's Chapel United Methodist Church, we continue a very
special tradition called the Hanging of the Greens- the decorating of God's
house with evergreens on this the second Sunday in Advent.
Invocation
Dear
Lord, we are here in this house of worship to celebrate the Advent of Your Son,
our Lord. This is a joyous occasion, O God, because our lives have been
enlightened by the coming of Jesus. And so, with the lighting of candles and the
singing of carols we praise You, O Lord. With the placing of wreaths, the
decorating of trees, and the ringing of bells, we honor Your unspeakable love for
us. Open our hearts that we may joyfully welcome Your Son; open our eyes that we
may see the beauty of His coming; open our ears that we may hear anew the
angel's song; and open our lips that we may tell others of His glory and His
peace. Amen.
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Tradition
