O Wisdom: Advent Daybook, 23
This week we are adoring Jesus by praying the prophetic names of the O Antiphons.
O SAPIENTIA (WISDOM )
OPENING PRAYER: 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.
Read: Isaiah 11: 2, Baruch 3: 9, 3:13 -15, 3:32 - 4: 4
A Reading from Isaiah 11: 2
"And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord."
A Reading from Baruch 3: 9, 3:13 -15, 3:32 - 4: 4 *
"Hear the commandments of life, O Israel; give ear, and learn wisdom! If you had walked in the way of God, you would be dwelling in peace for ever. Learn where there is wisdom, where there is strength, where there is understanding, that you may at the same time discern where there is length of days, and life, where there is light for the eyes, and peace. Who has found her place? And who has entered her storehouses?
But he who knows all things knows her, he found her by his understanding. He who prepared the earth for all time filled it with four-footed creatures; he who sends forth the light, and it goes, called it, and it obeyed him in fear; the stars shone in their watches, and were glad; he called them, and they said, “Here we are!” They shone with gladness for him who made them.
This is our God; no other can be compared to him! He found the whole way to knowledge, and gave her to Jacob his servant and to Israel whom he loved. Afterward she appeared upon earth and lived among men. She is the book of the commandments of God, and the law that endures for ever. All who hold her fast will live, and those who forsake her will die.
Turn, O Jacob, and take her; walk toward the shining of her light. Do not give your glory to another, or your advantages to an alien people. Happy are we, O Israel, for we know what is pleasing to God."
*The Apocrypha: What Is It? Why do Anglicans Read It?
Pray: Read Malcolm Guite's sonnet and then sing the first verse of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel as today's prayer.
I cannot think unless I have been thought,
Nor can I speak unless I have been spoken.
I cannot teach except as I am taught,
Or break the bread except as I am broken.
O Mind behind the mind through which I seek,
O Light within the light by which I see,
O Word beneath the words with which I speak,
O founding, unfound Wisdom, finding me,
O sounding Song whose depth is sounding me,
O Memory of time, reminding me,
My Ground of Being, always grounding me,
My Maker’s Bounding Line, defining me,
Come, hidden Wisdom, come with all you bring,
Come to me now, disguised as everything.
Sing:
O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
Who orderest all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel
Do: Today, spend 15-20 minutes in complete silence, listening to God.
Because of Christ and the Holy Spirit, we are able to converse with our Creator God. Today, put yourself on the listening side of the conversation. Don’t strive or analyze; just sit in quiet and notice what comes to your mind and heart. Trust God to speak in love and truth.
O Antiphons
O COME, O COME EMMANUEL!
"In the first centuries, the Church had a beautiful custom of praying seven great prayers calling afresh on Christ to come, calling him by the mysterious titles he has in Isaiah, calling to him; O Wisdom. O Root! O Key O Light! Come to us! "-- Malcolm Guite
Advent slightly shifts its focus beginning December 17 when the antiphons for Vespers, known as the O Antiphons, are sung at the Magnificat. Each O Antiphon addresses Jesus with a title that comes from the prophecies of Isaiah anticipating the coming of the Messiah. The first letters of the titles in the original Latin in reverse order spell "Ero Cras," meaning "Tomorrow, I will come."
The reality is that most of us who celebrate Christmas have been praying the O Antiphons without ever knowing it. The seven prayers comprise the seven verses of the beloved Advent hymn "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." I know I'm not alone in my love for that hymn. I never get tired of it and enjoy almost every arrangement I've ever heard.
I first learned about the O Antiphons from a beautiful collection of sonnets by poet-priest Malcolm Guite. I began including the seven reflections in my Advent Daybook each year. Later, our Church began celebrating an annual Advent Compline service, incorporating Guite's seven sonnets into an excellent resource from our friends at Modern Liturgic.
This year, I'm adapting the dates to fit the format of Daybook Meditations. For the next seven days, leading up to Christmas, I've shifted our daily lectionary passages to specially selected Scripture for each of the O Antiphons. Instead of including a piece of music, I’ll invite you to sing one verse of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, each day.
I'll also include a link to each of Malcolm Guite's seven sonnets which invite us to delight in the O Antiphons' deeper meaning:
"... we come to the last of the Seven Great O Antiphons, which was sung on either side of the Magnificat on Christmas Eve, O Emmanuel, O God with us. This is the antiphon from which our lovely Advent hymn takes its name. It was also this final antiphon which revealed the secret message embedded subtly into the whole antiphon sequence. In each of these antiphons we have been calling on Him to come to us, to come as Light as Key, as King, as God with us. Now, standing on the brink of Christmas Eve, looking back at the illuminated capital letters for each of the seven titles of Christ we would see an answer to our pleas: ERO CRAS the latin words meaning 'Tomorrow I will come!" -- Malcolm Guite
Taken together, the O Antiphons circle us back to the heart of Advent: waiting for arrival. I hope you'll find the meditations to take you deeper into the heart of God with us who will surely come again and forever. Let's sing our hearts out this week, friends!
O COME, O COME EMMANUEL!
A few additional resources:
The Homely Hours: The Great O Antiphons Printable Ornaments
God With Us: An Advent Retreat with the O Antiphons from Pray-As-You-Go
You can read thoughtful reflections on each Antiphon at Thinking Faith here.
Hear all seven O Antiphons in order in this beautiful recording of O Come, O Come Emmanuel by the Invitation Project!
An O Antiphons liturgy from Modern Liturgic