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Christmastime traditions continue on Liberty Mountain

Christmas Coffeehouse, “In the City,” Dec. 3 (Photo by Natalie Olson)

 

As students prepared for their last week of classes and exams for the fall semester, Liberty University hosted a variety of events to get them in the holiday mood.

On Dec. 2, Liberty chose a more festive scene for the last Convocation of the year. The Advent Convocation featured special music by the rock band Future of Forestry. Lead singer Eric Owyoung performed several classic Christmas hymns, including “Silent Night,” “O Holy Night,” and “Joy to the World.” Owyoung was accompanied on stage by an orchestra, chamber singers from Liberty, and members of the Liberty Worship Collective.

Advent Convocation, Dec. 2 (Photo by Chase Gyles)

Liberty Vice President of Spiritual Development Josh Rutledge delivered a brief message on hope and emphasized that Christian hope is far superior to worldly hope.

“If Christ happened, then I can trust that whatever does happen tomorrow does not determine the end of the story because the end is Christ and Christ happened,” he said.

The next day started early for those who took part in the Reindeer Run on Dec. 3. Runners, many dressed in holiday attire, competed in the 2-mile race at Hydaway Outdoor Center.

In addition to the race, the center also hosted Christmas at Hydaway on Dec. 1-4, where students and the general public were invited to walk through light displays, visit food trucks, and even meet Santa himself.

Since the 1990s, one of Liberty’s largest Christmas traditions has been Christmas Coffeehouse. Thousands of students filled the Vines Center on Dec. 3 for the late-night variety show featuring student musicians, dancers, and other performers. This year’s theme was “In the City.”

 “Christmas Coffeehouse is honestly one of my absolute favorite events,” said Chris Misiano, vice president of campus recreation and logistics. “This year, I was once again amazed and impressed by the talent on this campus. There just isn’t anything else like this — at LU or anywhere else. I am really proud of all of the hard work put in by our Director of Student Activities Cort Comfort and his team. I am really pleased to see so many students come and enjoy Coffeehouse. With such a large freshmen class, we had a lot of people experiencing our event for the very first time.”

Liberty holds one Coffeehouse each semester. The spring event, “Exes and XO’s,” will take place on March 25 in the Vines Center, starting at 11:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at Liberty.edu/Coffeehouse.

Liberty’s School of Music’s Christmas at the Boulevard: Pops, Dec. 2 (Photo by Natalie Olson)

“I have always been a believer that students really love Coffeehouse because all acts, videos, hosts, games, etc. strictly feature students,” Comfort said. “The variety, dedication, and personality that goes into this show come from those students and their hard work. This will always be the case, as we preserve this decades-old tradition.”

Liberty’s School of Music hosted two Christmas at the Boulevard shows in the Center for Music and the Worship Arts Concert Hall. The Dec. 2 event was a Pops concert, followed by a Classics concert on Dec. 6. Guests were treated to performances by the University Chorale, Concert Choir and Chamber Singers, along with the LU Symphony Orchestra.

The Jerry Falwell Library also helped students celebrate the holiday season on Nov. 28 by allowing the student body to take part in decorating the atrium of the library.

Student Activities held Christmas in Lights on Nov. 14, which included the annual Christmas Tree lighting on the Academic Lawn of the Montview Student Union.

Tuesday, Dec. 6, is the last day of classes. Reading Day is held on Wednesday before exams start on Thursday and run through Dec. 13.  Spring Semester begins on Jan. 16.

View more photos from the Christmas events below.

 

Reindeer Run, Dec. 3 (Photo by Chase Reed)
Reindeer Run, Dec. 3 (Photo by Chase Reed)
Liberty’s School of Music’s Christmas at the Boulevard: Pops, Dec. 2 (Photo by Natalie Olson)
Christmas at Hydaway, Dec. 1-4 (Photo by Chase Reed)
Christmas at Hydaway, Dec. 1-4 (Photo by Chase Reed)
Liberty’s School of Music’s Christmas at the Boulevard: Pops, Dec. 2 (Photo by Natalie Olson)
Advent Convocation, Dec. 2 (Photo by Chase Gyles)
Christmas Coffeehouse, “In the City,” Dec. 3 (Photo by Kendall Tidwell)
Christmas Coffeehouse, “In the City,” Dec. 3 (Photo by Natalie Olson)

 

 

 

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