Advent candies/wreath?

[Weegiemum]

I should know this, we've had an advent wreath for years. But the books etc are in the attic and I'm too disabled to climb up!

My pastor has asked me to do "something" about the candles on each Sunday in advent. I'd go and dig the book out but it's hard for me (I'm really not up to it).

I'm planning an advent wreath with candles that our youngest children (our church is small but we have a 6, 7, 8, 10, 10 year old!).

Does anyone know what the candles represent? I'm thinking hope joy love peace and?

Hi weegie I don't know the answer to your q but in your post name is a misspelling advent "candies" well if parents are agreeable it might be nice to actually include a small sweet in this. It could represent sweetness :)

Just googled it the 5th candle.just represents Jesus' birth on Christmas day.

Yes, I love Advent Candies!!

The 5 are (I think) peace, hope, joy, faith, love.

Sweeties all round!

Although the readings in church may not reflect this, a long-standing tradition is that Candle 1 is for the patriarchs (Abraham, David) - those who listened to God and faithfully followed his word. Candle 2 is for the Prophets in the Hebrew scriptures who spoke about a coming Messiah and the redemption of God's people; Candle 3 is for John the Baptist who proclaimed the imminent arrival of the Messiah - this candle is also coloured not red, but rose-pink, and the 3rd Sunday is known as Gaudete Sunday - which means "Rejoice!"; Candle 4 is for Mary. Candle 5 is white and is lit on Christmas morning or at midnight Christmas Eve.

Another way of handling the weeks of Advent in children's work is to look at the "O antiphons" (which turn up in the advent hymn, O Come O Come, Emmanuel) - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Antiphons - taking four of them and creating artwork around them.