Isaiah 9:2 says 'The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.' John connects this with the arrival of Jesus, saying The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.'...

We celebrated the first Sunday in Advent by lighting the first candle on our Advent wreath, made up of handprints from church members: We also distributed Advent calendars which included a child's activity booklet all about Christmas to the children in the church....

If we simply look at what goes on in the world at this time of year, we gain a very skewed perspective of what Christmas is all about: glitter, lights, spending vast amounts of money, overeating, noise and toys. Christians celebrate Christmas, however, because this is...