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Throughout the liturgical season of Advent, the Church recalls everything and everyone who prepared the way for the Lord.
This spiritual theme has been a central part of Advent for many centuries, dating back to the Middle Ages.
In particular, medieval Christians would celebrate, "Adam and Eve Day" on December 24.
To commemorate the unique feast, there developed a “Paradise Play,” that recounted the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis. A central part of the play was a “Paradise Tree” that stood for the tree in the garden of Eden.
On the tree the people hung fruit and some believe that this tree and its proximity to Christmas was an early form of a Christmas tree.
All Holy Ancestors of Jesus Christ
The Church has not completely abandoned this ancient commemoration. When the Roman Martyrology was revised in 2004, December 24 received the following entry:
Commemoration of All Holy Ancestors of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham, or of those fathers who pleased God and who, found righteous, even without having received the promises, but having only looked at them and greeted them from afar, died in the faith: from them Christ, who is above all creation, God blessed for ever, was born according to the flesh.
This commemoration also includes all those who lived righteously before the incarnation.
The Church continues to remember Adam and Eve, and all those who came after them, though in a more subdued way than in the Middle Ages.
Regardless of how the Church commemorates Jesus' ancestors, Advent is the perfect time of year to recall the history of the world and how all creation was waiting for a savior.
