Welcome to this edition of Ask the Church, our video series where we seek to answer your questions about church worship, practice, or theology in around five minutes.
Today’s question is about Advent.
Can you tell me a little more about this season—its history, its purpose, and the color purple?
The Origins of Advent
Advent is a very old Christian season. We have evidence of the Church practicing Advent since at least the late 300s A.D., so it’s been around for a long time.
The idea of Advent springs out of an impulse that’s deeply Christian: the sense that we need to prepare before entering into the great celebrations and feasts of the Church year.
This idea—that preparation must precede celebration—isn’t only found in Christianity. It’s something we see in the secular world, as well.
Think about the engagement of a couple: there’s a long season of preparation before the time of joy. Or think about childbirth, where the months of waiting and carrying the child are a time of preparation before the joyful arrival of new life.
There’s something in God’s economy, in the very nature of the world, that cries out: You need to prepare for the great moments of joy.
Preparation Before Meeting God
That idea becomes especially important when the moment of joy is an encounter with God.
Throughout Scripture, we see that people fast and prepare before meeting Him.
Elijah fasts on his way to Mount Sinai, where he encounters God (1 Kings 19:8).
Moses fasts before receiving the Law and the vision of God on the mountain (Exodus 34:28).
The idea that preparation precedes meeting God is a beautiful biblical truth.
The World’s Pattern vs. the Church’s Pattern
It’s worth noting that our world, when it comes to celebration and fasting, usually does things backward.
We feast first—and then feel guilty afterward, so we fast later. That’s the logic behind the New Year’s resolution after Christmas!
But the Church reverses that pattern. You fast first so that you’re ready for the feast.
And that’s even more important when the feast is an encounter with God.
We fast or prepare because we need to be stripped of all the things we use in place of God. We need to let go of what temporarily satisfies us so that we’re truly hungry for Him—ready for Him.
Preparation—which includes fasting, penitence, and prayer—comes before the encounter with God because we need to clear away all that clutters the soul before coming into His presence.
That’s the basic Christian idea behind Advent, and it’s the reason Christians began observing it so early on.
It’s the same principle behind Lent: you fast, prepare, repent, and pray in anticipation of encountering God.
The Meaning of the Color Purple
The color purple used during Advent is a symbol of preparation, penitence, and fasting. Interestingly, the Church has used purple since about the 13th or 14th centuries, but before that the color was actually black.
That would make for a gloomy Advent!
Purple replaced black in the Western Church as the color of preparation—the color of fasting, of repentance, and of getting ready for a great feast.
But the fast of Advent isn’t dark the way Lent is. It’s not overly penitential. Advent’s tone is one of longing and expectation—a hopeful preparation for the coming of Christ. It’s a time to set aside distractions and prepare for a new encounter with God.
The Two Advents—and a Third
That’s the basic overview of Advent. But the most important thing to add is this:
From the beginning, Advent has been understood as not only preparation for the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, but also a reminder that Christ will come again.
The two “Advents”—Advent being the Latin word for “arrival”—are linked together. The first is a proof of the second.
So when we prepare during this purple season for the arrival of Christ at Bethlehem, we are also learning to wait for His return—the day when He comes again at the end of all things.
Many Christians have also spoken of a “third” Advent: the coming of Christ into each of our hearts.
Advent, then, is a time to remember that Christ has come to the world, that He comes to each of us, and that He will come again.
A Season of Preparation and Hope
In this season of preparation and waiting—as we set aside certain pleasures to deepen our longing—let’s remember all three of these comings:
that He has come to the world,
that He comes to us now,
and that He will come again in glory.
So as you see the color purple this season, let it remind you that we are preparing for an encounter with God—that we are getting ready, waiting, and hoping in patience for Him.
I hope that this answer helps.
As always, if you have questions, send them to steven@incarnationrichmond.org.
And now—go in the grace of our Lord.