Today, millions worldwide are opening the first door on their Advent calendar. Although 1 December is treated as the first day of Advent, in the Christian calendar it actually changes: in 2021, it began on 28 November.

But it seems some could not wait. A slew of celebrities from Gigi Hadid to Peter Crouch have been putting up trees and decking their halls with boughs of holly almost six weeks before Christmas.

Some think this is what is wrong with how we celebrate: gaudy displays put up months too early for social media clout. 

And it is not just the celebrities. Mince piesA kind of sweet pie eaten around Christmastime in the UK, New Zealand and Australia. start appearing in October. Most cities turn on their Christmas lights in mid-November. Manchester Christmas MarketA street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during Advent. They are a medieval German tradition that has been exported to the rest of the western world., the biggest in England, opened on 12 November this year.

Many worry that by bringing Christmas celebrations so far forward, we are neglecting the most important part of Advent: waiting.

There is no doubt that looking forward is good for us. Psychologists have found that we are much happier thinking about something in the future than we are when we remember something.

The ability to make ourselves wait is "delayed gratification". Young children sometimes struggle with this, and it is seen as one of the most essential elements of growing up.

Some philosophers think patience is the most important human trait. Martin HeideggerA German existentialist philosopher who has been extremely influential in the development of modern philosophy, although he is also controversial for his far-right political beliefs and associations with Nazism. feared that if we always get what we want, we lose the ability to question why we want it and how we are getting it.

That is why some believe we should take Advent more seriously. We should take the time to enjoy looking forward to Christmas, not try to have the whole holiday all at once.

Others argue there are really two Christmases: a secular one, based on shopping, crackers, carols and gifts, and a spiritual one, marked by serious Advent services and religious contemplation.

They think that is what makes Christmas inclusive: non-Christians can enjoy the "season of goodwill". And the waiting involved in spiritual Christmas has little relevance to secular Christmas, which is about feeling good.

In fact, extending this secular festive season could be good. When the weather takes a turn for the worse, many people grow depressed, a condition known as seasonal affective disorderA mood disorder that causes people who do not normally suffer from mental health problems to exhibit depressive symptoms at specific times of year, usually winter.. And this is a particularly stressful Christmas, with the omicron variantA new variant of Covid-19. It is thought to be the most infectious variant of the virus yet, although the data on it is still very limited. of Covid-19 threatening to cancel it.

Christmas decorations can be comforting, because they remind people of happy times and get them excited for the fun to come. So it makes sense that some people are putting up their lights early, to keep their spirits up.

Yes. Studies have shown that we are happier when we have something to look forward to. This commercialised Christmas is trading in our mental health in a cynical bid to make us buy more. We should return to a simpler Christmas, one where waiting is key.

No. There is no reason people should not enjoy every day of Advent as if Christmas were already here. If surrounding themselves with decorations makes people happy, then we have no right to stop them. It is just as much a part of Christmas as anything else.