Sacred Roots Workshop

Ses s i on 7: L i v i ng i n the Way

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E. The Cycle of Light in the early Church: Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany

1. Advent was considered the most favored moment for Christian baptism.

a. Encouraged Christians to relive the Old Testament expectations that they believe were fulfilled at Bethlehem

b. Prepare for the Lord’s return at the consummation

2. Two traditional feasts related to the date of Christmas are the Annunciation (March 25, nine months before December 25; cf. Luke 1.26-38) and the Presentation of Christ in the temple (February 2, forty days after Christmas; cf. Luke 2.22-40).

3. The early Church, in opposition to the Roman worship of the sun, envisioned Christ’s entrance into the world as the early dawn of a new day, the drawing near of “the Sun of righteousness” (Mal. 4.2).

4. The Bible does not set Christ’s birth as December 25 (Rome) or January 6 (Egypt).

5. Influence of observing the winter solstice as the point at which “the sun begins again to grow” (i.e., over time, the Roman date won out). 1

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1 The Eastern Orthodox observe Christmas thirteen days later than December 25 because of its historical refusal to ignore the Gregorian calendar over what they consider the “secular” Julian calendar.