It is believed that in the fourth century, European followers of the still-newish religion called Christianity first formally observed the period in December leading up to the birth of Jesus Christ. They called it “the advent,” from the Latin word for “approach” or “arrival,” and it was a somber time, one for preparation and contemplation. In the sixth century, Pope Gregory composed many of the texts still associated with the advent, at least as it is practiced by Catholics. In the 19th, German Protestants turned the waiting into something more like counting, lighting candles to mark the days until Christmas. For millions of people, for more than 2,000 years, the advent has represented an opportunity to reflect, to anticipate—to make holiness out of the spiritual equivalent of standing in

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