A Family Christmas Resource You Won't Want to Miss!
“Hahaha,” says Santa. “You’ll never get it all done!”
Two Decades of Celebration
For years the whole month of December was a blur. I always felt one step behind, rushing to one more party or one more store.
I’d collapse in January feeling relief—we made it!—and regret. All the things I wished I’d done…
Then, through a homeschool listserve (remember those?!), I discovered the Jesse Tree tradition. What a gift! I bought one of the only guides available at the time and committed to adding evening Jesse Tree devotions to our busy December schedule.
It worked! … Sort of.
We often forgot about our reading, or didn’t have time to do it. Even when we did, something was missing.
So in 2003 I began a passion project, one that would take me the next almost twenty years to complete.
Last Year’s Celebration, This Year’s Gift to YOU!
I began writing our own Jesse Tree Advent celebration guide. But I wanted more than just words and cute ornaments. I wanted artwork, and music, and memories that would carry my children into adulthood!
Bit by bit, year after year, I added to it. I searched YouTube for the absolute best favorite carols, scoured the web for the most beautiful artwork …
And last year I launched the website, Joy of Advent, to make the Joy of Advent available to everyone. For free.
Holiday music with new carol every day? Check! Beautiful artwork? Check! Cute ornament? Check!
Joy of Advent is a virtual daily devotional reading for children and adults. Each email also has curated music videos and classical (usually) works of art that are truly breathtaking.
Daily Inspiration
Christmas and Advent Joy delivered every day, directly to your inbox.
What is Advent?
Advent marks a season in the church (liturgical) year that has been celebrated since around the 5th century. Some have even dated it as early as 380 AD at the Council of Sargossa.
The word Advent comes from the Latin, adventus, which means arrival, specifically the arrival of someone of importance. It was a translation of the Greek word, parousia. Parousia meant the coming of Christ, both as a human baby and His Second Coming. According to this article, originally, the first two Sundays of Advent celebration focused on the Second Coming, while the final two focused on Jesus’s birth. While that focus has largely been lost, we continue to celebrate Advent as a season of preparation—preparing our hearts for the coming of Jesus.
Interestingly, in 2022 the first Sunday of Advent will be November 27th, next year December 3, and the following year December 1. The reason for the changing dates? Advent always begins four Sundays before Christmas. Christmas being on the 25th of December means that Advent’s beginning changes, as does the length of the season.
After the season of Advent, come Christmas (I bet we all knew that already, right?), but did you know that Christmas is also a season?
The 12 Days of Christmas begin on Christmas day and continue until Epiphany, the celebration of the visit of the Magi.
The Joy of Advent daily readings are structured around the Jesse Tree, in part because the Jesse Tree is a beautiful, ancient tradition, and because it gives us the opportunity to pull a scarlet thread from the tapestry of Scripture.
12th century Jesse Tree from an illuminated manuscript.
What is the Jesse Tree?
King David, son of Jesse, was one of the first and greatest kings of the nation of Israel. As with all kingdoms of old, David's reign eventually ended, and after generations, the house of Jesse was little more than a stump of a once-mighty tree.
And yet…
The roots of that stump drank from a cistern of promise. From the stump of Jesse's family tree would come a branch bearing fruit. Not just fruit, but life-giving fruit for all.
Only A Privileged few learned to read and write during this time in history. Fewer still learned to read Latin, the only language in which the Bible was then available. The common people depended on other means to learn about God's works. The stories of Scripture were lived, retold, and depicted in art. The first known Jesse Tree pictured in stained glass windows is found in France, circa 1140. You can read more about Advent and the 12 Days of Christmas here.
How have we celebrated with the Jesse Tree?
For many years we added tiny, handmade ornaments to an equally tiny, faux pine tree. When the ornaments, sculpted from homemade salt dough, began to disintegrate, we re-made them with oven-bake clay and found a light-up cherry tree with branches just right for hanging.
For the crafty among you, tutorials for all our clay ornaments are at Joy of Advent!
Printable Ornaments
Less crafty? I created printable ornaments to accompany each reading. One set uses stained glass art, while the other uses the artwork from the children’s reading. Find them at the Joy of Advent Christmas Shop!
Advent Calendars
For an even simpler celebration, I created a printable Advent Calendar. Color in each day, or print the stickers linked above for an easy, hands-on activity.
What Symbols does our Jesse Tree Feature?
If you’d like to join me this season and craft Jesse Tree ornaments, or simply want to see what figures are covered in Joy of Advent, the Advent and Christmas topics and symbols are listed in the graphics below.
What Else is at Joy of Advent?
A Holiday Resource Hub with inspiring stories and articles, and growing selection of holiday recipes and crafts.
Full instructions for adding an Advent Wreath to your holiday celebration (a Joy of Advent subscription also includes special Sunday Advent Wreath feature!).
A Christmas Shop with an ever-expanding selection of holiday printables.
Celebrate Advent and the 12 Days of Christmas with Me This Year!
Subscribe, follow, and share the Joy of Advent!
