Dec. 17, 2014

By Stephen Tartaglia
Diocesan Director of Family Life

Growing up, we put up our artificial Christmas tree on Dec.13 because it was my brother’s birthday.  Now, as an adult with my own family, I continue to put the tree up sometime in the middle of December.

We still have an artificial Christmas tree which we use year after year.  The sturdy kind that doesn’t mind the … toddlers pulling on branches, older kids running into it, playing under and around it, etc. 

As long as we tie it to a hook in the wall securely, we’re fine!  True, it loses some (a lot) of its fake plastic needles each year and somehow I think we’ve misplaced one of the branches.  We just turn that side toward the wall each year.

My wife’s parents gave it to us when we were newlyweds and we wouldn’t dream of getting rid of it. 

Each year as we pull out the tree we make the same jokes, we have the same process of assembling it and decorating it and we use the same decorations we have for years.  Of course we continue to add the new ornaments that our children make each year in art class in school.  I still have one that I made when in grammar school…a little Christmas tree with elbow macaroni glued on as ornaments and the whole thing spray painted with gold paint.  Tacky, but sentimental!

One year I decided to try something different.  I downloaded prayers for the Blessing of a Christmas tree from the site of the Catholic bishops of the United States (http://www.usccbpublishing.org/client/client_pdfs/xmastree.pdf)

I invited family members over to help put up and decorate the tree, and when it was done we all participated in a little ceremony to bless the tree. 

I wasn’t sure how this would be received, but it was easy, fun, and very meaningful for all of us.

It opened the door for spiritual conversations and helped us to focus on the true reason for Advent and Christmas.

The next year I decided to try something else.  We replaced the children’s normally longer bed time prayers with one verse of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.”

It was a big success, so we continued it each year since then.  It’s easy to learn and since we sing it every night, by the end of Advent even the youngest one can join in. 

I’m a little hesitant to admit this but one reason my children love Advent is because prayers at bedtime are shorter and a little more fun.

In fact, it was so successful that I decided to introduce the practice in the Catholic school I was working at.  As principal I led prayer every morning.  During Advent I replaced the normal morning prayers with one verse of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” and invited anyone who wanted to come to my office to sing with me.

By the end of Advent my office was packed with children and adults Who wanted to sing.  So I invited everyone to go Christmas carolling throughout the neighborhood with me, and the response was very positive.  Whole families joined us.

We began in the school parking lot with a prayer and ended on the school playground that was decorated and lit with Christmas lights.  We received a blessing from the pastor and then enjoyed hot chocolate and Christmas treats.  The carollers loved it and so did the neighbors. 

Advent is a great time for families to evangelize.  Christmas carolling, reaching out to people Who are alone during the holidays, offering unexpected gifts or kindnesses to neighbors, are great ways of spreading the love of God. So too are religious decorations, Christmas cards and other well-wishes to family and friends.  

The celebration of Advent is rich in rituals and symbolism and is one of the best times for parents to help their families grow closer to God. The traditions that families establish during Advent build lasting memories and are an easy way for parents to catechize their children.

Advent celebrated well helps children learn that the real meaning of the season is the coming of Christ, and it strengthens the family’s resolve not to get swept away by the secularized focus on materialism at this time of year.

Many Catholic families - including the Leaders in Gouverneur - create and prayer around Advent Wreaths during the weeks leading up to Christmas. Here, Stephen Tartaglia, diocesan  family life director, shares other ideas for family celebrations of Advent.