Editor's Note: Last Sunday marked the beginning of the Advent Season in Christian churches. Waiting and anticipation are the watchwords during the next four weeks as Christians wait for the most celebrated event in the church calendar: Christmas, the birth of Jesus.

The Rev. Dennis Hill, pastor of Mount Carmel Baptist Church, shares his thoughts on Advent and how his church marks the season in a meaningful way.

Once upon a time, Baptists in North Carolina did not know anything about Advent. We knew about Santa, Christmas parades, Christmas carols, drawing names for Christmas gifts, and family dinners. But Advent was a foreign word to us.

Baptists knew all about Mr. and Mrs. Santa, and all of his elves. We could all say "The Night Before Christmas" without missing a word. Baptists never tried to baptize Rudolph, but if we could have caught him, we might have given it a try. We had no doubt that Rudolph was a national hero. Santa even visited our Christmas parties for children, but something just didn't seem right about mixing Santa with baby Jesus in the nativity. It gave us a strange feeling that something was out of place. But what the heck? Everybody loved Santa, so it must be all right.

Baptists loved Christmas parades with the high school marching bands, and the beauty queens riding in convertibles, and the hunting clubs with possums hanging in trees above barking dogs riding right down Main Street in front of First Baptist Church. About the time our feet were frozen solid we could hear the last band playing "Here Comes Santa Claus," and sure 'nough, there he was in his bright red suit and his golden sleigh.

We Baptists loved it, but somehow, it seemed to us that something was missing.

Although no one said much about it, Baptists and other Protestants sensed that we needed to reclaim the meaning of Christmas. We discovered that for many centuries, some parts of the Christian Church had celebrated something called Advent. North Carolina Baptists did not know much about other Christian traditions. We also discovered that many Christian traditions followed a church calendar that was anchored in the events in the life of Jesus and the church. It made sense that the church year would begin with anticipating the birth of Jesus. After all, Advent is all about anticipation and preparation for the birth of the Messiah. Move over Santa; here comes Jesus.

The Baptists at Mount Carmel took to Advent like fish to water. Of course it was simply logical to re-center our worship around Jesus, rather than Santa.

For many years we have begun Advent with a service of Hanging of the Greens, or decorating the church. Instead of a Christmas tree draped with secular decorations, we hang Chrismons on the tree. Those are symbols for Jesus and his life and significance. We use the Chrismons to teach both children and adults about Jesus. For example, there are triangles representing the Trinity, circles representing wholeness, fish representing the Greek letters for Jesus' name, a cross, angels, bread and wine. It makes a beautiful Christmas tree.

Mount Carmel Baptists celebrate the four Sundays of Advent by adopting the themes Hope, Joy, Peace and Love for each of the Sundays. But most of all, we have reclaimed the deeper meaning of Christmas. Many of our families also use Advent meditations at home. Advent has solved one problem -- our children never think that Jesus and Santa were buddies, or that Jesus wears a red coat at Christmas. We no longer have that feeling that something is missing in our Christmas celebration.

We are still friends with Santa, but Mount Carmel will have an Advent float in the Chapel Hill Christmas parade this year. See you there!

SEE JESUS, B