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| ==Etymology== | | ==Etymology== |
| From Latin perfect passive participle '''adventus''', ''coming to'', from verb '''advenire''', ''come to'', from prefix '''ad-''', ''to'', + verb '''venire''', ''come'' | | From Latin perfect passive participle '''adventus''', ''coming to'', from verb '''advenire''', ''come to'', from prefix '''ad-''', ''to'', + verb '''venire''', ''come'' |
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| ===Pronunciation=== | | ===Pronunciation=== |
| /ˈæd.vɛnt/ | | /ˈæd.vɛnt/ |
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| ===Definition=== | | ===Definition=== |
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| # [[Coming]]; coming to; [[approach]]; [[arrival]]. | | # [[Coming]]; coming to; [[approach]]; [[arrival]]. |
| # The first or the expected second coming of [[Christ]]. | | # The first or the expected second coming of [[Christ]]. |
| # The period or season of the Christian church year between [[Advent Sunday]] and [[Christmas]]. | | # The period or season of the Christian church year between [[Advent Sunday]] and [[Christmas]]. |
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| ===Translations=== | | ===Translations=== |
| coming, arrival | | coming, arrival |
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| *Finnish: saapua, saapuminen | | *Finnish: saapua, saapuminen |
| *Kurdish: KUchar, دهرپهڕین | | *Kurdish: KUchar, دهرپهڕین |
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| ==Gale== | | ==Gale== |
| ===Advent=== | | ===Advent=== |
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| ===Candles and calendars=== | | ===Candles and calendars=== |
− | [[Image:Adventkalender andrea.JPG|thumb|An [[advent calendar]].]]
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− | [[Image:Adventkranz andrea.JPG|thumb|An [[advent wreath]].]]
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| Advent in the Christian sense refers to the four weeks before Christmas. The four Sundays of Advent are often traditionally celebrated with four [[candle]]s with one to be lit each Sunday. Each candle has a specific meaning associated with different aspects of the Advent story. The first one almost always symbolizes expectant [[hope]] and is sometimes associated with [[prophecy]]. The others are organized around characters or themes as a way to unfold the story and direct attention to the celebrations and worship in the season, such as [[Peace]], [[Love]], [[Joy]]. The third (and sometimes fourth) is generally symbolic of [[Joy]] at the imminence of the coming of Christ. A fifth, white or gold, candle -- called a "Christ Candle" -- is often lit in the center on [[Christmas Eve]] and/or [[Christmas Day]] to signify Christ's birth.<ref>[http://www.bibleresourcecenter.org/vsItemDisplay.dsp&objectID=E2406E66-96D6-42BE-88C3F7AF9E0B8C48&method=display Bible Resource Center: The Advent Wreath]</ref> | | Advent in the Christian sense refers to the four weeks before Christmas. The four Sundays of Advent are often traditionally celebrated with four [[candle]]s with one to be lit each Sunday. Each candle has a specific meaning associated with different aspects of the Advent story. The first one almost always symbolizes expectant [[hope]] and is sometimes associated with [[prophecy]]. The others are organized around characters or themes as a way to unfold the story and direct attention to the celebrations and worship in the season, such as [[Peace]], [[Love]], [[Joy]]. The third (and sometimes fourth) is generally symbolic of [[Joy]] at the imminence of the coming of Christ. A fifth, white or gold, candle -- called a "Christ Candle" -- is often lit in the center on [[Christmas Eve]] and/or [[Christmas Day]] to signify Christ's birth.<ref>[http://www.bibleresourcecenter.org/vsItemDisplay.dsp&objectID=E2406E66-96D6-42BE-88C3F7AF9E0B8C48&method=display Bible Resource Center: The Advent Wreath]</ref> |
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| ====Eastern Orthodox tradition==== | | ====Eastern Orthodox tradition==== |
− | {{main|Nativity Fast}}
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| In [[Eastern Orthodox]] churches — where it is also called the '''[[Nativity Fast]]''', '''Winter Lent''', or the '''Christmas Lent''' — it lasts forty days, beginning on [[November 15]] (for those churches using the [[Julian calendar]] this is equivalent to [[November 28]]), and in other [[church]]es from the Sunday nearest to [[St. Andrew's Day]] ([[November 30|30th of November]]) until Christmas. It is uncertain at what date the season began to be observed. A [[canon law|canon]] of a council at [[Saragossa]] in 380, forbidding the faithful to be absent from church during the three weeks from the [[December 17|17th of December]] to the [[Epiphany (feast)|Epiphany]], is thought to be an early reference to Advent. The first authoritative mention of it is in the [[Synod]] of [[Lerida]] (524), and since the sixth century, it has been recognized as the beginning of the Western [[ecclesiastical year]] (the Eastern ecclesiastical year begins on [[September 1]]). | | In [[Eastern Orthodox]] churches — where it is also called the '''[[Nativity Fast]]''', '''Winter Lent''', or the '''Christmas Lent''' — it lasts forty days, beginning on [[November 15]] (for those churches using the [[Julian calendar]] this is equivalent to [[November 28]]), and in other [[church]]es from the Sunday nearest to [[St. Andrew's Day]] ([[November 30|30th of November]]) until Christmas. It is uncertain at what date the season began to be observed. A [[canon law|canon]] of a council at [[Saragossa]] in 380, forbidding the faithful to be absent from church during the three weeks from the [[December 17|17th of December]] to the [[Epiphany (feast)|Epiphany]], is thought to be an early reference to Advent. The first authoritative mention of it is in the [[Synod]] of [[Lerida]] (524), and since the sixth century, it has been recognized as the beginning of the Western [[ecclesiastical year]] (the Eastern ecclesiastical year begins on [[September 1]]). |
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