page_title: Advent
section_title: Four Sundays
hierarchical_section_title: Advent / Four Sundays
caption_attribution_description: English: Unlit advent wreath, Poertschach on Lake Woerth, district Klagenfurt Land, Carinthia / Austria / EU Deutsch: Unbeleuchteter Adventkranz, Pörtschach am Wörthersee[Pörtschach am Wörthersee], Bezirk Klagenfurt Land, Kärnten / Österreich / EU
context_page_description: Advent is a season of the liturgical year observed in many Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for both the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas and the return of Jesus at the Second Coming. Advent is the beginning of the Western liturgical year.
  The term "Advent" is also used in Eastern Orthodoxy for the 40-day Nativity Fast, which has practices different from those in the West.
  The term adopted from Latin adventus "coming; arrival", translating Greek parousia.
  In the New Testament, this is the term used for the Second Coming of Christ.
  Thus, the season of Advent in the Christian calendar anticipates the "coming of Christ" from three different perspectives: the physical nativity in Bethlehem, the reception of Christ in the heart of the believer, and the eschatological Second Coming.
  In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, the Western Rite of the Orthodox Church, and in the Anglican, Lutheran, Moravian, Presbyterian, and Methodist calendars, Advent commences on the fourth Sunday before Christmas—the Sunday nearest to St. Andrew's Day. It can fall on any date between 27 November and 3 December.
context_section_description: In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, the readings of Mass on the Sundays of Advent have distinct themes:
  On the First Sunday (Advent Sunday), they look forward to the Second Coming of Christ.
  On the Second Sunday, the Gospel reading recalls the preaching of John the Baptist, who came to "prepare the way of the Lord"; the other readings have associated themes.
  On the Third Sunday (Gaudete Sunday), the Gospel reading is again about John the Baptist, the other readings about the joy associated with the coming of the Saviour.
  On the Fourth Sunday, the Gospel reading is about the events involving Mary and Joseph that led directly to the birth of Jesus, while the other readings are related to these.
  In another tradition:
  The readings for the first Sunday in Advent relate to the Old Testament patriarchs who were Christ's ancestors, so some call the first Advent candle that of hope.
  The readings for the second Sunday concern Christ's birth in a manger and other prophecies, so the candle may be called that of Bethlehem, the way, or of the prophets.
  The third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday after the first word of the introit (Philippians 4:4), is celebrated with rose-coloured vestments similar to Laetare Sunday at the middle point of Lent. The readings relate to John the Baptist, and the rose candle may be called that of joy or of the shepherds. In the Episcopal Church USA, the collect "Stir up" (the first words of the collect) may be read during this week, although before the 1979 revision of the Book of Common Prayer it was sometimes read in the first Sunday of Advent. Even earlier, 'Stir-up Sunday' was once jocularly associated with the stirring of the Christmas mincemeat, begun before Advent. The phrase "stir up" occurs at the start of the collect for the last Sunday before Advent in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
  The readings for the fourth Sunday relate to the annunciation of Christ's birth, so the candle may be known as the Angel's candle. The Magnificat or Song of Mary may be featured.
  Where an Advent wreath includes a fifth candle, it is known as the Christ candle and is lit during the Christmas Eve service.
  Other variations of the themes celebrated on each of the four Sundays include:
  The Prophets' Candle, symbolizing hope; the Bethlehem Candle, symbolizing faith; the Shepherds' Candle, symbolizing joy; the Angel's Candle, symbolizing peace
  Hope–Peace–Joy–Love
  Faithfulness–Hope–Joy–Love
  Prophets–Angels–Shepherds–Magi
  Faith–Prepare–Joy–Love
caption: Advent candles
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