Another Advent Custom is the Jesse Tree. This shows the ancestry of Jesus Christ as a tree with all the famous ancestors of Jesus going back as far as Jesse , the father of King David. Some churches do this with a service of the Hanging of the greens. Others use a tree, either at home or in a sanctuary, as a Jesse tree. This is a tree or a large banner with a symbolic tree that is decorated each week usually by the children with ornaments or objects that represent Old Testament events from creation to the birth of Jesus.
The last Advent custom is the Christingle. The Christingle is a decorated Orange with a red ribbon, sweets and nuts and in the middle a small candle is placed. The Orange represents the world, the ribbon is Christ’s blood and the sweets and nuts represent the fruits of the Earth.
The next festival I am going to discuss is Lent. The season of Lent begins during late February on the day called Ash Wednesday. This is six and a half weeks before Easter. Lent lasts for forty days and ends the day on Easter SundayLent is a serious and thoughtful festival. It is a time when Christians remember how Jesus spent 40 days and nights alone in the wilderness being tempted by the Devil. Jesus used this time to prepare for His work by fasting and praying. (This story can be found in the Bible in and .) Also in Lent, we fast to get our bodies ready for the rising of Jesus and to mirror his actions of fasting for forty days In the desert.
Another Festival I am going to explain is Christmas. Christmas is an important time for Christians. This was when Jesus was born and this is very important time because Jesus then went on to save us. On a Sunday before Christmas many churches will have a service that includes a nativity play. The children will act out the Christmas story. There will also be carol services, sometimes by candle-light. Also, some churches will start Christmas Day with a midnight communion service (midnight mass). Other churches will have a short informal service for all the family on Christmas morning. If the church has a crib, the figure of Jesus is put in on Christmas Day. The fifth, and last, Advent candle will be lit. Giving presents is a major custom at Christmas. It was started by Jesus and Christians follow by example, so we do it too.
At Christmas we also put up trees. This was started in 1860 by Prince Albert. It’s holy significance is that the tree is in shape of a triangle sop it represents the holy trinity. It is an evergreen (never loses its leaves), which reminds Christians of their hope of eternal (everlasting) life. The angel on the top reminds us of the angels in the Christmas story.
In the year 1220 St, Francis of Assissi visited Bethlehem. He liked the way the Christmas was celebrated there so much, that he asked the Pope for permission to recreate it in his own Italian village. He built a manger in a cave. In it he placed a stone image of the baby Jesus. He surrounded the manger with real animals. Then he said a Mass (communion). The people found it so moving that they said it was possible to believe you were there at the actual birth of Jesus. Before long, wooden nativity scenes were displayed in churches and homes across Europe. Today they continue to be popular as a way of reminding us of what Christmas is really about - the birth of Jesus.
Carols first came from France. The word Carol means circling dance. Christmas carols have been sung in UK churches for 800 years. Cheerful carols would be sung and the Christmas story acted out - much like we still do today. This would mostly be done by the Salvation Army. They would come round houses and in town and sing carols. This would be with their band. They would then raise money for charities.
The last Christmas custom I am going to explain is the custom of Christmas cards. The very first Christmas card was made in 1843. The Christmas cards at first showed happy people on one side and sad people on the other. Nowadays, the cards are made by charities like Oxfam and Christian aid. These would try and raise money for the poor and needy.
Pentecost is the time when the Holy Spirit came to the disciples as the holy spirit and tongues of fire. After Jesus died and was raised from the dead you would expect the early Christians to be keen to let everyone know. Instead they were afraid and met together secretly. The Jews celebrate the time of 'Pentecost' fifty days after the Passover as a sort of harvest festival. The first Pentecost took place after Jesus rose. The holy spirit then came to the Christians as tongues of fire. They described it as being like flames burning on their heads and said there was a sound like a strong wind. They changed completely. Peter, who had been afraid, began to speak in public to a great crowd and many people became Christians. This is normally celebrated on the 30th May. Another name for it is Whit sun. Pentecost comes ten days after Ascension Day when we remember that Jesus went back to heaven after His resurrection.
Easter is a springtime festival and is straight after Lent. Easter normally takes place on a Sunday in April. It was on Easter Sunday that Jesus rose from the dead. Before Jesus was arrested, he told the disciples that we would be crucified and then rise on the third day. He was arrested on Good Friday and he rose on Easter Sunday. He rose three days later so his prophecy came true. This verse can be found in the bible in
"When we get to Jerusalem," he said, "the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die. Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, whipped, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead."
No one went to the guarded tomb on the Saturday, as it was the Jewish holy day. On the Sunday morning Mary, and later some of Jesus' disciples, went to His tomb and discovered that it was empty. They thought that someone must have stolen Jesus' body. Then, Jesus showed Himself to them, and spoke to them. He was alive. This account can be found in the Bible in , and in .
“The next evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene and Salome and Mary the mother of James went out and purchased burial spices to put on Jesus' body. Very early on Sunday morning, just at sunrise, they came to the tomb. On the way they were discussing who would roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb. But when they arrived, they looked up and saw that the stone, a very large one, had already been rolled aside. So they entered the tomb, and there on the right sat a young man clothed in a white robe. The women were startled, but the angel said, "Do not be so surprised. You are looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, who was crucified. He isn't here! He has been raised from the dead! Look, this is where they laid his body. 7Now go and give this message to his disciples, including Peter: Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you before he died!" The women fled from the tomb, trembling and bewildered, saying nothing to anyone because they were too frightened to talk.”
Christians believe that Jesus is still alive today but not in a human body. They believe that he has ascended to Heaven.