The first season of the church year is Advent, which begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. (Any Sunday which occurs from November 27 to December 3 inclusive is the First Sunday in Advent.)
During Advent, the church reviews the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah, repeats the gospel narratives of the events leading to the birth of Christ and the preaching of John the Baptist, and exhorts the people to repentance and preparation for the Second Coming of our Lord.
A safe guide to the selection of hymns will be found in the section of the hymnal headed "Advent"; but examination of the Scripture readings will often enable one to choose hymns which are particularly appropriate for certain Sundays in Advent.
The Second Sunday in Advent, often called "Bible Sunday," takes its main theme from the collect and epistle of the day, and is devoted chiefly to the Holy Scriptures. Hymns and anthems which have referenced to the Word of God or to the spreading of the gospel are suitable.
The collect for any Sunday may be said at the evening service on the preceding Saturday; and the collect, epistle and gospel are used throughout the following week except on days for which a collect, epistle and gospel are appointed. Usually there is only one collect for each Sunday; but after the collect for the First Sunday in Advent there is rubric ("rubric" is the term applied to the italicized directions which are printed throughout the Prayer Books) to the effect that it is to be used Christmas Eve ("until Christmas Day" in the American book). Therefore, from the Second Sunday in Advent until Christmas two collects are read: that for the Second, Third or Fourth Sunday in Advent, followed by that of the First Sunday in Advent. This is an important point for organists to remember.
Also to be observed during the Advent season are three Ember Days - the Wednesday, Friday and Saturday after December 13, and always occurring in the week following the Third Sunday in Advent.
Ember Days are set apart for intercessions for the clergy, ordination candidates, and church workers in general. Hymns and anthems should mention the preaching of the gospel, the commissioning of apostles, teachers, etc. Some ordination hymns are appropriate.
The English Prayer Book contains no collect, epistle, gospel or proper lessons for Ember Days, but provision is made for them in the Canadian and American books.
In the Canadian book, the general Table of Lessons allows no interruption in the continuity of the readings which are begun on Advent Sunday. A few pages farther on, however, the table of Lessons Proper for Special Days does list appropriate lessons for these Ember Days in December, and these may well be consulted when hymns are being selected.
The American book appoints proper lessons in the table of Psalms and Lessons for the Christian Year.
Both the Canadian and American books contain a collect, epistle and gospel to be used on Ember Days. The collect will be followed by the collect for the First Sunday in Advent, and perhaps by that of the Third Sunday in Advent as well.
In churches where no services are held on Ember Days, the rector may decide to read the collect on the preceding or the following Sunday, in which case a suitable hymn may also be used.