Advent is the time of the year that Christians observe for four Sundays before Christmas Day.

The word Advent means “coming or arrival,” hence it is the season when Christians prepare their hearts and homes for the celebration of the arrival or birth of Jesus and it is also a season of preparation for the future arrival of Christ known as the Second Coming.

With this back drop of history and tradition, the people of the Cassopolis United Methodist Church (CUMC) are prepared for a wonderful December filled with activities of food, fun, fellowship, music, decorations, and, of course, hope, peace, joy and love the traditional words associated with the Advent wreath and the four Sundays before Christmas Day.

The church invites members of the community to “mark their calendars” to attend any or all of the Christmas celebrations. CUMC is a church of open hearts, open minds, open doors and welcomes all to experience Christmas with them.

Sunday worship services, Dec. 15 and Dec. 22 at 10 a.m., will include the lighting of the Advent wreath, an examination of hope, peace, joy and love and the meaning of the birth of Jesus for life in the 21st century.

The Dec. 15 service will also include a short program by the children of the church.

Community Dinner

Saturday, Dec. 21, is the date of the monthly community dinner hosted by the church.

The church has been preparing these free-of-charge monthly meals as a gift to the community for over two years.   Those who attend regularly rave about the food, most of which is prepared by members of the church in the church kitchen.

The December dinner hosted by the Rev. David Hutchison promises to be a special culinary delight of the season.   Dinner will be  served from 4 to 5:30 pm in the Wood Fellowship Hall. Come one, come all to eat and enjoy conversation with other community members.

Lessons and Carols

During the morning worship service on Sunday, Dec. 22 the liturgy and worship will be a walk through the announcement, journey, and the coming of Christ Jesus. This will be done through lessons and carols, which is the reading, singing, and preaching of the coming of Christ in human form. The church’s pianist, Kyaw Than Aye, as well as the pastor, will both be sitting at separate baby grand pianos to assist in the music and worship, but also to prepare for their Dueling Christmas Piano Concert to be held that evening at 6 p.m.

Cassopolis United Methodist Church is located at 209 S. Rowland St. Entrance during the week can be made via the O’Keefe Street parking lot. On Sundays, the Rowland Street sanctuary doors are also open. For more information, the church can be contacted at 445-3107 or by email at casscumc@frontier.com.