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San Ramon, CA (November 29, 2007) - In the busy enjoyment of the Christmas season, how can we hear a “voice of one crying out in the desert” (Luke 3:4) to prepare for the celebration of the birth of Jesus? The 5th Annual Online Celtic and Nature Advent Calendar inspires visitors to reflect on the beauty of nature and learn about Celtic traditions.

The calendar features photos from the deserts of the American Southwest, the forests of the American East Coast, the beauty of Northern California, the high-desert chapels of Santa Fe, and the cathedrals of Vienna, Austria.

New this year, many of the daily Advent reflections include activities that families can do together to experience the feelings of adventure and waiting that Advent represents.

The calendar answers such questions as:

Why is it fitting that the Advent story should begin in the desert?

Why are the symbols of St. Nicholas and Santa Claus so meaningful during Christmas?

What are some Celtic Christmas traditions, such as candlelit windows in Ireland?

How does beauty in nature, such as snowflakes and evergreen trees, reveal the wonder of God to us?

In addition, the website offers a Christmas feature called Charity Gift Boxes. Eight gifts each symbolically represent a charity. When a visitor clicks on a gift, he or she can read a profile of the charity and decide whether to visit that charity’s website to give time or money. We have selected a range of charities to reflect the wide interests of our visitors.

The creator of the Online Celtic and Nature Advent Calendar and Charity Gift Boxes, Sherry Weaver Smith, became Catholic as an adult after working with Catholic charities for one year in Manila, the Philippines. She is a freelance writer and published poet. She is a married mother of a four-year-old girl.

For more information, visit Sherry’s Knowledge Quest at www.sherrysknowledgequest.com/adventcalendar.htm

Sherry Weaver Smith
sherry@sherrysknowledgequest.com