Other Christmas Traditions
A number of years ago, Dan and I started a Christmas tradition of celebrating Advent by having a Jesse Tree. Basically, from December 1st to the 25th we read a passage of scripture and then have the kids hang an ornament on a little table top tree.
The purpose of the Jesse Tree is to look at Jewish history from creation up until the birth of Christ. There is a corresponding ornament for each passage. For example, today's passage was on Abraham offering Isaac as a sacrifice and God providing a ram in his place. The picture is ram.
I keep telling myself that I'm going to make ornaments to go with the readings, but for now I've laminated the pictures which the children hang on the tree.
It's been a wonderful way to look at history and to celebrate Christ's birth.
It is wonderful to have traditions to pass down to other generations. I wish my parents had done that so that I could have also passed it on but I think we did try to start the one of having and ornament with our children's name on them so that they could take them with them when they had their own families but you guys never were around to give you your ornaments when the time came. I still have some with your names on them. I will have to see that you get them.
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