A meditation on the First Sunday of Advent, from Dom Guéranger’s The Liturgical Year.The First Sunday of Advent opens the Church’s new year by calling believers to wakefulness, repentance, and hopeful expectation of Christ’s coming. Its prayers and readings dwell on humanity’s need for a Redeemer, vividly acknowledging the wounds left by sin while stirring a longing for the divine healing that the Incarnation brings. Isaiah’s prophecies, read from the very first moments of the liturgy, remind us both of God’s sorrow over a people who often fail to recognize Him and of His unwavering promise to send a Savior who will dispel darkness with His justice and mercy. Advent begins, then, as a cry of the Church and of each soul—“Come!”—a plea for Christ to clothe our spiritual poverty, awaken us from complacency, and guide us safely through the shadows of this life toward the radiance of His coming.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