On the Advent Wreath.

I was sitting one evening watching my mother as she decorated the Christmas tree and fought with my cats to keep them from climbing it. Meanwhile, I sat in the dining room watching the burning advent wreath on the table before me. The wreath I made is composed of one common dish in which all five candles sit together. At the time, only the four colored candles were lit, as the center Christ candle is not lit until the Christmas mass.

As I watched, the purple and rose votive candles began to melt, and the wax pooled into the dish and circled around the Christ candle. It was then that the full symbolism of the wreath hit me, as the wax from the Hope, Love, Joy and Peace candles all gravitated to the center Christ candle. I had always viewed the wreath as going from outside to in, since we light the center candle last, but I now think it more accurate to say that it goes from the inside out, as Hope, Love, Joy and Peace are all emitted from Christ. Christ is the source of all these things, and in return, we look to his comming with these same virtues. From Christ we recieve a sense of hopeful, loving and joy-filled peace, with which we in turn offer Him. It all comes full circle, just like the shape of the advent wreath, in which we find perfect balance, harmony and the full essence of what Christmas truly is. Amen.

-Riley