Child Advent

A series of five easily staged advent presentations to be given by children on the 4 Sundays preceding Christmas and on Christmas Eve.

Tells of the significance of the advent wreath.

Cast: 5 (m or f) written for 5, this could be done by any number of actors.
Bible Reference:
Set:  Bare with table for wreath
Sound: wireless mics
Song:  none
Lighting: as available
SFX:  none
Props:  wreath with four candles at the outside and a larger candle in the center, matches
Costumes:  standard
Special Instructions:  Depending on the children’s ages you may want to have an adult light the candles.  We suggest extinguishing candles after each segment as a fire precaution.
Time: 3 minutes each, total 15

Sample of script:

First Sunday of Advent

1st reader: Today is the first Sunday of Advent. We recognize advent by lighting the candles of the advent wreath.
The wreath, a circle, reminds us of God, endless and eternal, without beginning or end.

2nd reader: The green of the wreath reminds us of the hope we have through God, and that through God we have hope for renewal, salvation and eternal life.

3rd reader: Candles remind us that God came into the world through His Son, Jesus Christ, as a man, suffered and died for our sins, so we could have a home in heaven.

4th reader: The four outer candles symbolize the time of waiting and anticipation which we celebrate in the four Sundays of Advent.

5th reader: The center candle represents Jesus Christ; he was, and is, central to our faithful hope.
And so it is that the first candle, which we light today, is a symbol of the hope we have in salvation, and the hope of Jesus’ return.

All: We light the candle, recognizing the hope of Jesus.

Light first candle

Second Sunday of Advent the first candle is lit
1st reader: Today is the second Sunday of Advent. Today we will light the second candle, the peace candle, sometimes called the Bethlehem candle.

2nd reader: Bethlehem, under the cruel control of the Roman army, could only dream of
peace, since they knew no freedom even in their own land.

3rd reader: For hundreds of years the people of Israel had heard their prophets speak of the coming of the Messiah, one who would bring peace to their land.

4th reader: It must have been difficult, with war and injustice all around them, to keep their hope that peace would really happen.

5th reader: How did those Jewish people hold on to their belief that the Messiah would come, and with him peace?