Advent Wreath

During the season of Advent, many of us have different ways of preparing for Christmas. Some may decorate gradually, putting out a different piece of the Nativity set each day; others may do the Advent Calendar. Easily the most common devotion of Advent, though, is the Advent wreath. But what actually is the Advent wreath? What does each part represent?

The wreath itself is a circle of evergreen branches. This represents God who is eternal, without beginning or end (like a circle), and who is the source of eternal life (evergreens are called that because they stay green all year round, not changing colors or losing leaves). 

There are four candles to represent the four centuries between the end of the Exile, the time of the prophets, and the coming of the prophesied Messiah. Three of these candles are purple. The color purple is typically associated with preparation and purification within the life of the Church. The priest wears purple not only during Advent and Lent but also during confessions, exorcisms and certain blessings that are meant to purify. The pink/rose is for the third week of Advent (as well as the fourth Sunday of Lent) which marks the halfway point of the season. The reason it is pink is that it is meant to be a mixing of the purple of Advent with the white of Christmas. We light a new candle on the wreath each week to represent the coming of Jesus, the Light of the World, coming into the darkness of our world. 

As we continue our Advent season, may the lighting of our Advent wreath be one of many ways in which we truly prepare for the coming of Christ into the world! “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).