A meditation for the Feast of St. Hyacinth, from Dom Guéranger’s “The Liturgical Year”, Volume IV of the Time after Pentecost.Saint Hyacinth of Poland (c. 1185–1257), known as the “Apostle of the North,” was a Polish Dominican friar and one of the great missionaries of medieval Europe. Born into a noble family, he studied at Kraków, Paris, and Bologna before becoming a canon of Kraków. He accompanied Saint Dominic at Rome and received the Dominican habit from him, returning afterward to Poland to establish the Order of Preachers there. Hyacinth traveled tirelessly through Poland, Prussia, Lithuania, Bohemia, Moravia, and Russia, preaching the Gospel and founding monasteries. He is especially remembered for his devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin Mary. According to tradition, when the Tartars attacked Kraków, Hyacinth was about to flee the Dominican church when he heard a voice from a statue of the Blessed Virgin urging him to take her with him; he carried the statue and the Blessed Sacrament to safety, despite their great weight. Saint Hyacinth died in Kraków on August 15, 1257, and was canonized by Pope Clement VIII in 1594.Please note that Servant of God Dom Prosper Guéranger went to his eternal reward in 1875; at this point, Volumes I-IX (Advent to Pentecost Saturday) had been completed, but Volumes X-XV (Trinity Sunday to Advent) had not yet been completed. Thus, the remaining readings of the Liturgical Year, from Trinity Sunday until Advent, were not directly authored by Dom Prosper, but were the work of his disciple Dom Lucien Fromage. 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.Link to the Dom Guéranger's Liturgical Year playlist (updated daily): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZKdyYnV_bkh7rH6piW0ShgsdcefFoOvJIf you would like to support this channel: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/InprincipioPodcast PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=U5EZ9X2CE2V7W Venmo: https://venmo.com/u/InPrincipioPodcast Zelle: inprincipiopodcast@gmail.com; or search for Zelle tag “inprincipiopodcast” Checks may be written out to ‘InPrincipio Podcast’ and mailed to: P.O. Box 117 Cedar Ridge, CA 95924Sincere thanks to all who are able to contribute, by your prayers, your patronage, or otherwise. Your support sustains this work and helps make these readings available to others.Artwork: “St. Hyacinth” by unknown artist Music: Ave Maria (Gregorian chant)Performed by Schola Gregoriana, Pallottine Seminary
