Day Begins With Night
Winter Dawn on Saltspring Island, BC I love that in the Jewish and Christian traditions, days actually begin the night before based on the lunar calendar of scripture. As the sun lowers below the horizon, swathing the world in darkness, we move into the new day. In earlier times, the night before a Christian feast day, vigil was kept. Vigil comes from the Latin vigilia which means wakefulness. Keeping vigil is in part what Advent is about, staying awake, keeping watch, waiting. We may go to vigil services for Christmas or Easter. There are times of keeping vigil in our own lives.