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FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS What are the "O Antiphons"? 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.The exact origin of the O Antiphons is not known. Boethius (c. 480-524) made a slight reference to them, thereby suggesting their presence at that time. At the Benedictine abbey of Fleury (now Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire), these antiphons...

“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” (O Antiphons) The Hymn of the Day today for this Fourth Sunday in Advent is hymn 357 in Lutheran Service Book, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” Please turn there now and maybe even mark it with the ribbon, because we’ll be referring to it throughout the sermon. You’ll notice on the page facing the hymn that there is a heading, “The Great ‘O’ Antiphons.” And there you will see seven such antiphons, listed by date, starting on December 17 and ending today, December 23. They’re called the “O” Antiphons, because each one starts with an...

Praying the O Antiphons: An Ancient Advent Tradition December 16, 2016 By Gretchen Filz During the final days of Advent, the anticipation increases as the birth of the Savior draws nearer and nearer. In the eight days before Christmas this anticipation is marked by something special that happens in the prayers of the Liturgy of the Hours. The antiphons of Evening Prayer (Vespers) during the week before Christmas welcome the birth of the Savior by heralding one of His resplendent Biblical titles along with a special petition in light of that title.It is a liturgical tradition started in the...

Catholic Prayer: Christmas Novena - December 16 - 24 Description:A Christmas novena is usually prayed, starting nine days before Christmas. The following novena was composed by an Italian priest, Rev. Charles Vachetta, C.M., in 1721. Most of the material comes from the Old Testament prophecies and the Psalms referring to the promised Redeemer. The novena consists of Opening Responsory Prayers, Psalm (Let the Heavens Be Glad), Scripture Reading, Magnificat with Daily Antiphon and Closing Prayer. This novena is prayed in conjunction with the O Antiphons, and if you are using an O Antiphon House or Tower, you would open the...

The Roman Catholic Lectionary Website compiled by Felix Just, S.J., Ph.D. "O Antiphons" for the Week before ChristmasIntroduction: Most familiar today from the Advent hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," the seven traditional "O Antiphons" are actually more than a thousand years old. They have long been used at the very end of Advent (Dec. 17-23) in the liturgical prayer of the Church, as Antiphons for the "Magnificat" sung or recited during Vespers (the Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours). Since the Second Vatican Council, they have also been adapted (slightly reworded and rearranged) for the "Alleluia...

FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS What are the "O Antiphons"? 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. The exact origin of the O Antiphons is not known. Boethius (c. 480-524) made a slight reference to them, thereby suggesting their presence at that time. At the Benedictine abbey of Fleury (now Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire), these antiphons...

O Antiphons – A Devotional Meditation Msgr. Charles Pope • December 6, 2015 • The Catholic Church has been singing the “O Antiphons" since about the 8th century. They were first composed as antiphons to accompany the singing of the Magnificat in Vespers of the Divine Office. They were composed for the last week of Advent, December 17th -- 23rd.They are a compact and beautiful theology that draws on biblical themes of the Old Testament. As such, they proclaim the coming Christ as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies and hopes. They also express current longings rooted in those themes....

"O Antiphons" for the Week before ChristmasIntroduction: Most familiar today from the Advent hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," the seven traditional "O Antiphons" are actually more than a thousand years old. They have long been used at the very end of Advent (Dec. 17-23) in the liturgical prayer of the Church, as Antiphons for the "Magnificat" sung or recited during Vespers (the Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours). Since the Second Vatican Council, they have also been adapted (slightly reworded and rearranged) for the "Alleluia Verse" of the Mass (the short scriptural text or paraphrase that...

While the world has already been celebrating a very secular "christmas" since before the Thanksgiving holiday, Christians ought not get caught up in the emptiness of it all.  Easter is now about bunnies and Christmas about buying and giving extravagant, and sometimes mountains of gifts for others.  Some will give to God what little time is left over, and other believers will give Him virtually not time at all.  Wtihin moderation, there is nothing wrong with gift giving.  But that should come secondary to something else.....  We must all ask ourselves if the practice of our faith revolves around our lives or...

December 17, 2011 Saturday of the Third Week of Advent   Reading 1 Gn 49:2, 8-10 Jacob called his sons and said to them:"Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob,listen to Israel, your father. "You, Judah, shall your brothers praise--your hand on the neck of your enemies;the sons of your father shall bow down to you.Judah, like a lion's whelp,you have grown up on prey, my son.He crouches like a lion recumbent,the king of beasts--who would dare rouse him?The scepter shall never depart from Judah,or the mace from between his legs,While tribute is brought to him,and he receives the people's...

"O Antiphons" for the Week before ChristmasIntroduction: Most familiar today from the Advent hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," the seven traditional "O Antiphons" are actually more than a thousand years old. They have long been used at the very end of Advent (Dec. 17-23) in the liturgical prayer of the Church, as Antiphons for the "Magnificat" sung or recited during Vespers (the Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours). Since the Second Vatican Council, they have also been adapted (slightly reworded and rearranged) for the "Alleluia Verse" of the Mass (the short scriptural text or paraphrase that immediately...

“O Emmanuel, Come” (Matthew 1:18-25)And now we come to the last of the seven O Antiphons, “O Emmanuel.” You see it there in your hymnal, on the page facing the hymn; it’s the one listed for December 23. You’ll find it also in your bulletin. So let’s pray this “Emmanuel” antiphon together: “O Emmanuel, our king and our Lord, the anointed for the nations and their Savior: Come and save us, O Lord our God.” This word “Emmanuel”--it sounds familiar enough, but what does it mean? The word “Emmanuel” with an “E” is just the Latin spelling of the Hebrew...

“O King of the Nations, Come” (Haggai 2:1-9, 20-23; Ephesians 2:11-22; Matthew 28:18-20)In our Advent series on the O Antiphons, today we continue with “King of the nations.” You’ll find it there in your hymnal or in the bulletin. Let us pray this antiphon together: “O King of the nations, the ruler they long for, the cornerstone uniting all people: Come and save us all, whom You formed out of clay.” Now this title for Christ, “King of the nations,” is sometimes also referred to as “Desire of nations,” not that the word “king” means “desire”--it doesn’t--but that this king...

“O Dayspring, Come” (Malachi 4:1-6; Luke 1:67-79; Revelation 22:16-20)The fifth of the seven O Antiphons is our theme for today, “O Dayspring, Come.” You see it there in your hymnal, as well as in your bulletin. Let’s begin by praying this antiphon together: “O Dayspring, splendor of light everlasting: Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.” The term “Dayspring” is not a word you hear every day. But you are hearing it on this day. We just sang, “O come, Thou Dayspring from on high.” And it comes up in stanzas in two...

Featured Term (selected at random):ROOT OF JESSE A symbol of Christ, "a shoot springs from the root of Jesse" (Isaiah 11:1). St. Ambrose explains the root as the family of the Jews, the stem as Mary, the flower as Christ. The great O antiphon of December 19 is sung "O Root of Jesse who standeth as an ensign of the people before whom kings will keep silence and unto whom the Gentiles will make supplication, come to deliver us and tarry not." Often represented as a flourishing tree, it carries the six-pointed star of Israel at is base and the...

“O Key of David, Come” (Isaiah 22:20-25; Revelation 1:12-13, 17-18; 3:7-13; Luke 1:26-33)O Wisdom, O Adonai, O Root of Jesse. And now today, O Key of David, the fourth of the seven great O Antiphons. You see it there opposite Hymn 357, and it’s also in your bulletin. So let’s begin by praying together the Key of David antiphon: “O Key of David and scepter of the house of Israel, You open and no one can close, You close and no one can open: Come and rescue the prisoners who are in darkness and in the shadow of death.” What...

“O Root of Jesse, Come” (Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 1:1-17)Today we continue with the third of the seven O Antiphons of Advent, these prayers addressing the coming Christ. This one begins, “O Root of Jesse.” You see it there on the page facing Hymn 357, as well as in your bulletin. Let us now pray this antiphon together: “O Root of Jesse, standing as an ensign before the peoples, before whom all kings are mute, to whom the nations will do homage: Come quickly to deliver us.” “O Root of Jesse, Come.” The Scripture on which this antiphon is...

“O Adonai, Come” (Exodus 3:1-15; Revelation 5:1-14; John 8:48-59)Today we continue with the second of the seven O Antiphons of Advent, “O Adonai.” You can see it there in your hymnal, opposite Hymn 357, and it is also printed in your bulletin. Let us pray that antiphon together: “O Adonai and ruler of the house of Israel, who appeared to Moses in the burning bush and gave him the Law on Sinai: Come with an outstretched arm and redeem us.” I suppose the first thing to ask about this antiphon is, “What is this strange word, ‘Adonai’? That’s not English,...

“O Wisdom, Come” (Proverbs 8:12-31; Colossians 1:15-20, 28; 2:2-3; John 1:1-5, 9)The Advent hymn we just sang, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” goes back about 900 years, to the 12th century. But the texts on which this hymn is based go back a few centuries before that, even--maybe 1200 years ago or more. They are known as the Great “O” Antiphons, and you can see them printed there on the facing page in your hymnal (LSB 357). What is an antiphon, you ask? An antiphon is a little framing verse that is sung before and after a canticle or a...

I’ve been fighting a cold, and not up to putting too much work into the blog today. So for today, just the collects and today’s O Antiphon. More posts with artwork and other Advent meditations will follow tomorrow, God willing. Today’s Antiphon: O Root of Jesse O Root of Jesse, who stand as a sign for the people, kings stand silent in your presence, whom the nations will worship: come to set us free, put it off no longer. The Traditional Collect: O LORD, raise up (we pray thee) thy power, and come among us, and with great might...