The Advent Calendar

The Advent calendar is a very popular tradition, especially with the younger Advent celebrants as it tends to generate anticipation of our Lord's birth on Christmas Day. And, after all, that is what Advent is all about -- the preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

The Advent calendar, as with the Advent wreath, is presumed to have originated in Germany, specifically in the 19th century. Christian families would make a chalk mark for every day in December until Christmas Eve. In 1851 (the year of the first known Advent calendar) the chalk lines began to be replaced by calendars. Gerhard Lang (1881 - 1974) is credited with the first printed calendar in 1908. It consisted of miniature colored pictures that could be placed on a cardboard calendar for every day in December.

As the years have passed, the Advent calendar has evolved. I remember as a child I used to really look forward to opening the little windows on what I now know was an Advent calendar. This is something that I am passing on to my children. What a great way to generate that excitement over the coming of the Lord! I am trying to keep it in this perspective by having them open the windows during our Advent Celebration as we pray, light the candles, read the scripture, and remember the real reason for the season!

Today, the Advent calendar has evolved even further. I find myself drifting through cyberspace and finding electronic versions of the calendar. A couple of the calendars I have found on the internet are:

• NazNet Advent Celebration
  This one is in the shape of a Christmas tree and each ornament is a link to a page with a special Christmas message and devotional for that day. I found this quite nice!
• A World Wide Christmas Calendar
  This one is interesting in that each link takes you to a page that describes the way Christmas is celebrated in different parts of the world.
• Christmas Art Advent Calendar
  This is quite delightful as you search the perimeter of the "calendar" for the appropriate day. The link then takes you to a page that displays the piece of art for the day. Each page is sponsored by a worthy organization. Even though the caption says this was written for the 1999 season, it still seems to be appropriate...

It is really kind of interesting to see how these electronic Advent calendars are keeping the excitement alive in me today. But if the computer goes down, I still have my children and those little windows to do the job!