The Notre Dame community has begun the advent season by putting up and decorating a fabulous Christmas tree in our main hall. Representing the wait for the coming of Christ, who is symbolized by the star at the top of the tree, its ornaments signify his many gifts to us.
Although the symbolism of the Christmas tree reaches back to St Boniface in the 7th century, more recently St Pope John Paul II said that an evergreen fir is a sign of undying life. It reminds us, he said, that with the birth of Jesus the tree of life has blossomed anew.