Does anyone celebrate the season of ADVENT as distinct from Christmas?
St. Nicholas is my personal Patron Saint and to some extent I celebrate him all year long by wearing my St. Nicholas medal. On December 6th we always have a very large meal and read aloud a bit of something about St. Nicholas. On the morning of the 6th our grandson always finds candy coins in his shoes because that is one of the traditional ways that the day is celebrated as a remembrance of St. Nicholas’ generosity. Advent actually used to be a time of fasting and prayer much like Lent, at least for the first three weeks of Advent. On the third Sunday a red candle was lit and the mood changed from penance to anticipation. We put up our Crèche on that third Sunday but the infant Jesus isn’t placed in the manger until we come in from Midnight Mass early Christmas morning.
