In last Octave of Advent (from December 17), the Church uses a special set of acclamations for the Gospel and in the Divine Office. They are called the O Antiphons for the very simple - not to say obvious - reason that they begin with "O" They are Antiphons that look back into the treasury of Old Testament imagery about the Messiah and create words filled with longing and promise. They are probably most familiar to us from the traditional hymn "O come, o come, Emmanuel" - but are given here in a more contemporary form -
There are, of course other titles we can use for Jesus - Bread of Life, Prince of Peace, Hope for the World...and so on. Each Antiphon expresses a longing - for justice - for liberation - for light in places of darkness - for help - all the human longings for a better world are there. The longing expressed by people looking towards the new age of the Messiah are the longings of people today. The difference is that the people waiting for the Messiah were not afraid to express their longing in the certainty that God would hear and answer - if not in their own lifetime then in His time... Are we as confident?
Drinking from the Wellspring Try to find the full texts of the Antiphons - in a Daily Missal or Divine Office book. Choose the one for the day - jot it down and use it as a short prayer throughout the course of the day. What longing in you does it express?You may find that one Antiphon stands out for you - this may be because it has special meaning or significance. Use it over several days -and see what emerges.... Before Mass on Christmas night/ day, gather your
reflections together... Waiting in Joyful Hope for |
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...a new age | ||||||||
...unity | ... for the Coming of our Saviour |
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