What do you think?
Rate this book
The Advent of Christ: Scripture Reflections to Prepare for Christmas
Perhaps the Christmas story has become almost too familiar. A virgin giving birth. A child laid in a manger. Shepherds greeted by angels. The Christmas story has become so familiar that the profound, even shocking, nature of the incarnation might be overlooked. But what if we had never heard the story before? What if we were hearing it for the first time, like the first-century Jews? These events certainly would not be taken for granted—they would signal something the dawning of the long-awaited Messiah.
This Advent, put yourself in that ancient Jewish world. Containing an entry for each day of Advent and continuing through the Christmas season, Dr. Ted Sri will help you to discover spiritual treasures in the Gospels and gain a new understanding of the coming of Christ.
This Advent, put yourself in that ancient Jewish world. Containing an entry for each day of Advent and continuing through the Christmas season, Dr. Ted Sri will help you to discover spiritual treasures in the Gospels and gain a new understanding of the coming of Christ.
112 pages, Paperback
First published July 30, 2013
48 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
About the author
Edward Sri
58 books259 followersDr. Edward Sri is a nationally-known speaker on Scripture and Catholicism and the author of several best-selling books. Besides teaching at the Augustine Institute, Sri is a visiting professor at Benedictine College and a contributor to the popular apologetics series, Catholic for a Reason. Sri is also a founding leader with Curtis Martin of FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students).
He also is the creator and host of a new 18-part video series on the Catholic faith for parish adult faith formation called Symbolon (Augustine Institute), and he serves the general editor of a Opening the Word: Journey through the Sunday Readings (Augustine Institute).
Dr. Sri leads pilgrimages to Rome and the Holy Land for lay people each year.
He resides with his wife Elizabeth and their six children in Littleton, Colorado.
Education
STD, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Rome)
STL, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Rome)
MA, Franciscan University of Steubenville
He also is the creator and host of a new 18-part video series on the Catholic faith for parish adult faith formation called Symbolon (Augustine Institute), and he serves the general editor of a Opening the Word: Journey through the Sunday Readings (Augustine Institute).
Dr. Sri leads pilgrimages to Rome and the Holy Land for lay people each year.
He resides with his wife Elizabeth and their six children in Littleton, Colorado.
Education
STD, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Rome)
STL, Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Rome)
MA, Franciscan University of Steubenville
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 7, 2025
Short, simple and beautiful reflections. I loved the history and scripture that was integrated into the daily reflections, which I feel other devotionals I’ve read have lacked. I’m starting this new year filled with a desire to continue learning more about my faith, which is very exciting because I have not felt that in a while! Also love that the reflections continued until the Epiphany. I would definitely recommend!
November 23, 2013
Sri includes reflections for each day of Advent and for each day of the Christmas Season, including the Epiphany. Each daily entry consists of: a brief Scripture passage, a daily meditation, questions for reflection to apply the passage to your life, and a short closing prayer.
I particularly enjoyed reading the entries in the fourth chapter about the Blessed Virgin Mary, entitled, "In Mary's Footsteps: Her Call and Her Journey of Faith", which is a concise, but comprehensive treatment of Mary's journey through Advent. In The Advent of Christ, we also journey through Advent with: St. Joseph, Zechariah, and St. John the Baptist; the Holy Family from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the witnesses to the mystery -- the Shepherds, the Magi, and Simeon.
Overall, it is easy to read and very understandable, and can be used individually or shared with the entire family. Each passage takes only a minute or two to read. I highly recommend it.
I particularly enjoyed reading the entries in the fourth chapter about the Blessed Virgin Mary, entitled, "In Mary's Footsteps: Her Call and Her Journey of Faith", which is a concise, but comprehensive treatment of Mary's journey through Advent. In The Advent of Christ, we also journey through Advent with: St. Joseph, Zechariah, and St. John the Baptist; the Holy Family from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the witnesses to the mystery -- the Shepherds, the Magi, and Simeon.
Overall, it is easy to read and very understandable, and can be used individually or shared with the entire family. Each passage takes only a minute or two to read. I highly recommend it.
January 6, 2021
I was looking for a good Advent book, and Edward Sri is a master at sharing and teaching our Catholic faith, so I ordered this. It was just what I wanted, readings for the season, followed by a reflection, and it went perfectly with my other spiritual endeavors for this beautiful season of waiting.
January 3, 2024
This is my second Bible study/scripture reflection by Edward Sri and I loved it as much as the first. I really love the parallels he brings to light between the Old Testament and the New. His reflections are short and attainable during a busy liturgical season and his questions are general and meditative enough to come back to if you wanted to reread.
December 30, 2018
It might be a better to date all the passages as opposed to beginning with the first Monday of Advent. I understand why it was done that way but it was a little confusing & I felt like all of sudden I missed stuff.
November 12, 2020
Giving Thanks
The perfect book for this time of the year, as we give thanks for Thanksgiving what could be more appropriate than remembering what we're most thankful for the birth of Christ the savior of the world.
The perfect book for this time of the year, as we give thanks for Thanksgiving what could be more appropriate than remembering what we're most thankful for the birth of Christ the savior of the world.
January 1, 2021
Maybe good for an Advent beginner. This did not go deep enough for me to get much out of it.
January 5, 2022
Great book For family devotions during advent. Sure, it’s good for an individual meditation too! It can cause you to think and delve more deeply into your spiritual life!
March 15, 2022
Not a common reflection book, but in-depth reflection through biblical interpretation.
January 5, 2025
This was one of my favorite Advent books. Easy to understand, I learned several new things and had clarity on a couple things I had not understood before.
November 11, 2013
The Advent of Christ is laid out like your standard daily devotional. It spans from the First Sunday of Advent to the Feast of the Epiphany. Each day includes a Scripture reading, a meditation on the Scripture, a reflection question to apply to your daily life, and a closing prayer. The commentary is mostly drawn from one of Dr. Sri's other books, Dawn of the Messiah. If you have never read this book, then you will be in for a treat. Dr. Sri breaks down the story leading up to Jesus' birth into manageable daily bites.
I particularly enjoyed the readings in the First Week of Advent. People always focus solely on Jesus and Mary, and OCCASIONALLY Joseph during Advent, which is very appropriate for the season. However, in focusing on only the Holy Family, one misses out on the story of Zechariah, Elizabeth, and John the Baptist. Apart from just being an interesting story about an aged wife becoming pregnant and a husband who can't speak throughout the whole pregnancy, these people are all key players in Salvation History! It was also interesting to read about Gabriel's appearance in the Old Testament, particularly Daniel 9, compared to Gabriel's appearance to Zechariah.
If all the hustle and bustle in the month leading up to Christmas is making it hard for you to focus on the real reason for the season, then you will want to pick up this book. Each meditation is approximately two pages and takes at most five minutes to read. Surely, we can all give God five minutes a day. In addition to being a short read, it is easily understood and can be read aloud to the whole family. Lastly, the closing questions and prayer put a nice bow on the package and serve a two-fold purpose of preparing us for Christmas and improving our spiritual health. It's a 5-star book that I plan on reading not only this Advent, but future ones as well.
I particularly enjoyed the readings in the First Week of Advent. People always focus solely on Jesus and Mary, and OCCASIONALLY Joseph during Advent, which is very appropriate for the season. However, in focusing on only the Holy Family, one misses out on the story of Zechariah, Elizabeth, and John the Baptist. Apart from just being an interesting story about an aged wife becoming pregnant and a husband who can't speak throughout the whole pregnancy, these people are all key players in Salvation History! It was also interesting to read about Gabriel's appearance in the Old Testament, particularly Daniel 9, compared to Gabriel's appearance to Zechariah.
If all the hustle and bustle in the month leading up to Christmas is making it hard for you to focus on the real reason for the season, then you will want to pick up this book. Each meditation is approximately two pages and takes at most five minutes to read. Surely, we can all give God five minutes a day. In addition to being a short read, it is easily understood and can be read aloud to the whole family. Lastly, the closing questions and prayer put a nice bow on the package and serve a two-fold purpose of preparing us for Christmas and improving our spiritual health. It's a 5-star book that I plan on reading not only this Advent, but future ones as well.
February 4, 2015
The Advent of Christ contains a reflection for each day, from the first week of Advent to the Feast of the Epiphany in early January. The readings begin with a passage from the Bible, followed by a page or two describing some of the historical and spiritual context of the reading as it relates to the Advent season. Very enjoyable.
January 4, 2025
Short, daily, and approachable reflections on Scripture for the whole Advent season and up until Epiphany. This enriched my engagement with and devotion to Scripture in a significant way. Each reflection is grounded in scholarly authority, rather than just personal reflections untethered from worthy Scriptural interpretations.
January 6, 2014
Not bad. Each day had a scripture passage, and explanation and exploration of the passage, and a reflection and prayer. I found the ending reflections to be a bit dry and non-provoking. But the readings and explanations were insightful, if boring.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews