ANSWERS

1) C. The nearest Sunday to November 30

THE period of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ begins on Sunday, December 3 this year. The name comes from the Latin ‘adventus’, meaning coming.

2) A. 1591

ADVENT can also mean ‘ The coming or arrival of any person or thing considered significant,’ according to the Oxford English Dictionary, which says this definition dates back as far as 1591.

3) False.

THE record for the largest ever advent calendar was set in December 2007. It was more than 232 ft tall (the height of more than 16 double-decker buses) and 75ft wide and built in London’s St Pancras station to commemorate its refurbishment.

The number of diamonds in the most valuable advent calendar was 124. It was valued at £2.1 million, according to Guinness World Records. This record was set in November 2010 in Antwerp, Belgium.

4) D. Death, judgment, heaven and hell

THESE ‘Four Last Things’ are the traditional focus of advent, according to the Church of England, which adds: ‘The characteristic note is expectation, rather than penitence, though the character of the season is coloured by an analogy with Lent.’

5) C. Purple

IT IS the liturgical colour of advent and is often used for candles, hangings around the church and the clergy’s vestments.

6) C. 11 per cent

THE study also found that 38 per cent of people bought their own advent calendar, while 42 per cent received one as a gift from their parents.