Chapter 3 of the Introduction to the Season of Advent: Practice During Advent, from Volume I of "The Liturgical Year" by Dom Prosper Guéranger.In this chapter, Dom Guéranger presents Advent as a time in which the faithful join the Church in preparing for Christ’s threefold coming by cultivating vigilance, prayer, and conversion of heart. Believers are first called to unite themselves with the longing of the ancient saints who awaited the Messiah, reflecting on the world’s darkness before Christ and gratefully pleading for His saving presence. They must then welcome His gentle, mysterious coming within their own souls, allowing Him to grow in them as He once grew from infancy to maturity, and recognizing that some souls live fully in His life, others weakly, and others not at all. Advent is therefore a season when Christ knocks at every heart, inviting the faithful, the lukewarm, and even those dead in sin to receive new life, while warning the unresponsive with the sober reminder of His future coming as Judge. Throughout this time, the Church urges all Christians to embrace both holy desire and holy fear, to undertake the purifying work of repentance, discipline, and prayer, and to prepare a straight path for the Lord, who promises to enter and dwell in any soul that opens to Him.Dom Prosper Guéranger's The Liturgical Year, a monumental fifteen-volume work, offers a comprehensive exploration of the Catholic Church’s liturgical calendar, guiding readers through the spiritual and historical richness of the Church’s worship. Written in the 19th century, the series provides daily meditations, historical context, and liturgical texts for the Mass and Divine Office, covering the entire cycle of seasons—Advent, Christmas, Lent, Passiontide, Easter, and the Time after Pentecost—as well as feast days of saints. Guéranger’s work, rooted in a deep contemplative spirit, aims to immerse the faithful in the Church’s prayerful life, emphasizing the unity of faith through the axiom lex orandi, lex credendi ("the law of prayer is the law of belief"), and remains a cherished resource for Catholics seeking to deepen their spiritual lives. Dom Prosper Guéranger (1805–1875) was a French Benedictine monk, liturgical scholar, and founder of the Solesmes Abbey, renowned for his pivotal role in reviving the Benedictine Order in France and restoring the Roman liturgy after the disruptions of the French Revolution. Born in Sablé-sur-Sarthe, he entered the priesthood in 1827 and, inspired by a vision to restore monastic life, reestablished the Benedictine community at Solesmes in 1833, becoming its first abbot. A staunch defender of ultramontanism and traditional Catholic worship, he also championed the revival of Gregorian chant, significantly influencing the liturgical renewal movement.Please note: The entries of the Liturgical Year are primarily authored by Dom Prosper Guéranger, but occasionally contain editors’ additions of subsequent information and events that are relevant to the given feast.Link to the Dom Guéranger's Liturgical Year playlist (updated daily, unless a Ferial day): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZKdyYnV_bkh7rH6piW0ShgsdcefFoOvJ