Francis Mershman

“ Historical Origin.—It cannot be determined with any degree of certainty when the celebration of Advent was first introduced into the Church. The preparation for the feast of the Nativity of Our Lord was not held before the feast itself existed, and of this we find no evidence before the end of the fourth century, when, according to Duchesne [Christian Worship (London, 1904) , 260] , it was celebrated throughout the whole Church, by some on 25 December, by others on 6 January. ”

“ In the fourth century, neighbouring dioceses began to interchange feasts, to transfer relics, to divide them, and to join in a common feast; as is shown by the invitation of St. Basil of Cæsarea (397) to the bishops of the province of Pontus. Frequently groups of martyrs suffered on the same day, which naturally led to a joint commemoration. In the persecution of Diocletian the number of martyrs became so great that a separate day could not be assigned to each. But the Church, feeling that every martyr should be venerated, appointed a common day for all. ”

“ Symbolism.—To attain this object the Church has arranged the Liturgy for this season. In the official prayer, the Breviary, she calls upon her ministers, in the Invitatory for Matins, to adore "the Lord the King that is to come", "the Lord already near", "Him Whose glory will be seen on the morrow". As Lessons for the first Nocturn she prescribes chapters from the prophet Isaias, who speaks in scathing terms of the ingratitude of the house of Israel, the chosen children who had forsaken and forgotten their Father; who tells of the Man of Sorrows stricken for the sins of His people ”

“ Binterim says that there was also a law that pictures should be covered during Advent. Flowers and relics of Saints are not to be placed on the altars during the Office and Masses of this time, except on the third Sunday; and the same prohibition and exception exist in regard to the use of the organ. The popular idea that the four weeks of Advent symbolize the four thousand years of darkness in which the world was enveloped before the coming of Christ finds no confirmation in the Liturgy. ”

“ All Souls' Day.—The commemoration of all the faithful departed is celebrated by the Church on 2 November, or, if this be a Sunday or a feast of the first class, on 3 November. The Office of the Dead must be recited by the clergy and all the Masses are to be of Requiem, except one of the current feast, where this is of obligation. ”

“ Of the dioceses, Liège was the first to adopt it under Bishop Notger (d. 1008) . It is then found in the martyrology of St. Protadius of Besançon (1053–66) . Bishop Otricus (1120–25) introduced it into Milan for the 15 October. In Spain, Portugal, and Latin America, priests on this day say three Masses. ”

“ Lingard, The History and Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church; Baring-Gould, Lives of the Saints; Binder, Allgemeine Realencyklopædie; Binterim, Denkwürdigkeiten; Probst in Kirchenlex., Kellner, Heortologie ”