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

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

Some think this is exactly what is wrong with how we celebrate Christmas in the 21st Century: gaudy displays put up months too early for social media clout. 

And it is not just the celebrities, they point out. Mince piesA kind of sweet pie eaten around Christmastime in the UK, New Zealand and Australia. start appearing in the shops 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 of its kind in England, opened on 12 November this year.

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

There is no doubt that looking forward to things 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 we have already done.

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

Indeed, some philosophers think that patience is the most important human trait altogether. 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 straight away, 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.

But others argue that there are really two Christmases now: 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 all about feeling good.

In fact, they claim, extending this secular festive season could be good for us. When the weather takes a turn for the worse, many people grow more 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 altogether.

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

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

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