Advent O Antiphons (17 - 23 Dec)

[BarbTherese]

[center][size=5]R E J O I C E![/size][/center]
[size=3][url="http://catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0822.html"]http://catholiceduca...ion/re0822.html[/url][/size]


[b] [u][size=4]Meditation Notes on the O Antiphons[/size][/u][/b]




[center][u][size=4][b]FR. ROGER J. LANDRY[/b] [/size][/u][/center]
[b] The “O Antiphons” refer to the seven antiphons that are recited (or chanted) preceding the Magnificat during Vespers of the Liturgy of the Hours. They cover the special period of Advent preparation known as the Octave before Christmas, Dec. 17-23, with Dec. 24 being Christmas Eve and Vespers for that evening being for the Christmas Vigil.[/b]

[b][color=#000000]Introduction[/color][/b]
On the evening of December 17 the final phase of preparation for Christmas begins with the first of the great "O Antiphons" of Advent. These prayers are seven jewels of liturgical song, one for each day until Christmas Eve. [u]They seem to sum up all our Advent longing for the Savior. [/u]
The "O Antiphons" are intoned with special solemnity in monasteries at Vespers, before and after the Magnificat, Mary's prayer of praise and thanksgiving from the Gospel of Luke (2:42-55), which is sung every evening as the climax of this Hour of the Divine Office.
A vestige of the "Great O's" can be seen in verses of the familiar Advent hymn, "O Come, O Come Emmanuel".
The importance of “O Antiphons” is [b][color=#ff0000]twofold[/color][/b]: Each one highlights a [color=#ff0000][b]title for the Messiah[/b][/color]: O Sapientia (O Wisdom), O Adonai (O Lord), O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse), O Clavis David (O Key of David), O Oriens (O Rising Sun), O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations), and O Emmanuel. Also, each one refers to the[color=#ff0000] [b]prophecy of Isaiah[/b] [b]of the coming of the Messiah.[/b][/color]






[center][u][size=5][b]Saturday 17th December 2011[/b][/size][/u][/center]
[center][size=5][b]Come, Wisdom of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love: [/b][/size][/center]
[center][size=5][b]teach us to walk in the paths of knowledge. [/b][/size][/center]
[indent][i](O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodisti, attingens a fine usque ad finem, fortiter sauviterque disponens omnia: veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.) [/i][/indent][indent]

O Come, Thou Wisdom from on high, who orderest all things mightily; to us the path of knowledge show, and teach us in the way to go.

O Sapientia: “O Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to salvation.” Isaiah had prophesied, “The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord, and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord.” (11:2-3), and “Wonderful is His counsel and great is His wisdom.” (28:29).

Wisdom is here personified, present with God at the beginning of creation. This is a prefigurement of Jesus, the eternal Word of God, the "logos" John described in the opening of his gospel. Wisdom is the foundation of fear of the Lord, of holiness, or right living: it is wisdom whom we bid to come and teach us prudence. The cry "Come" will be repeated again and again, insistent and hope-filled.

Prov. 1:20 Wisdom cries out in the street; in the squares she raises her voice.

1 Cor. 1:30 He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

Sirach 24:3: "From the mouth of the Most High I came forth, and like mist covered the earth".

Wisdom 8:1: "She reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well".[/indent]

[AccountDeleted]

Thanks Barb, we think alike. I posted the O Antiphons on Open Mike as well. Here is the link
[url="http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/topic/117550-the-o-antiphons/"]http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/topic/117550-the-o-antiphons/[/url]

[BarbTherese]

Thanks, nunsense! I am probably in the wrong forum. Not to worry, soon it is Christmas!

[AccountDeleted]

[quote name='BarbaraTherese' timestamp='1324105138' post='2352699']
Thanks, nunsense! I am probably in the wrong forum. Not to worry, soon it is Christmas!
[/quote]

I don't think there is a right or wrong phorum for this - I didn't know where to put it either - that's why we ended up with two of them

Here is another meditation on them
[url="http://www.integratedcatholiclife.org/2011/12/fr-landry-meditation-notes-on-the-o-antiphons/"]http://www.integratedcatholiclife.org/2011/12/fr-landry-meditation-notes-on-the-o-antiphons/[/url]

[MithLuin]

O Sapientia in chant: [url="http://fisheaters.com/audio/sapientia.mp3"]http://fisheaters.com/audio/sapientia.mp3[/url]

[BarbTherese]

[quote name='nunsense' timestamp='1324108368' post='2352704']
I don't think there is a right or wrong phorum for this - I didn't know where to put it either - that's why we ended up with two of them

Here is another meditation on them
[url="http://www.integratedcatholiclife.org/2011/12/fr-landry-meditation-notes-on-the-o-antiphons/"]http://www.integrate...he-o-antiphons/[/url]
[/quote]

That's a particularly good meditation: - thank you for the sharing! I am going to make a note of it for following years too:-
[quote]

[i][b]Titles and Prayer Requests[/b][/i][list]
[*]O Sapientia — Teach us the way of prudence
[*]O Adonai et Dux — Come to redeem us with arm outstretched
[*]O radix Iesse — Come to free us without delay
[*]O clavis David — Free us from prison of darkness & shadow of death
[*]O oriens — Illumine those sitting in darkness & the shadow of death
[*]O Rex gentium — Save man whom you formed from the dust
[*]O Emmanuel — Come to save us
[/list]
[i][b]Conclusion[/b][/i]
According to Professor Robert Greenberg of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Benedictine monks arranged these antiphons with a definite purpose. If one starts with the last title and takes the first letter of each one — [b]E[/b]mmanuel, [b]R[/b]ex, [b]O[/b]riens, [b]C[/b]lavis, [b]R[/b]adix, [b]A[/b]donai, [b]S[/b]apientia — the Latin words [i][b]ero cras[/b][/i] are formed, meaning, “[i]Tomorrow, I will come[/i].” Therefore, the Lord Jesus, whose coming we have prepared for in Advent and whom we have addressed in these seven Messianic titles, now speaks to us, “[i]Tomorrow, I will come[/i].” So the “O Antiphons” not only bring intensity to our Advent preparation, but bring it to a joyful conclusion. [/quote]

[BarbTherese]

Duplicated post - apologies

Edited December 18, 2011 by BarbaraTherese

[BarbTherese]

Woops! - duplicated post again!

Edited December 18, 2011 by BarbaraTherese