The second ‘O Antiphon’ in these last days of Advent invokes Adonai, the Hebrew word for “Lord” or “Lord of Lords”:
O Adonai of ancient Israel,
who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush,
who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain:
Come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free.
Today, we begin the home stretch of our Advent season of anticipation…with the countdown of the ‘O Antiphons’…a thousand-year-old liturgical tradition that will continue through Christmas Eve. So perhaps a holy pause is in order, to savor the first in the series:
O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!
At times, I wish Jesus wasn’t quite so good about keeping his promises.
Leaving lunch yesterday, a friend mentioned how hard it’s been for him to get Advent to “take” this year.
Would you ever consider adopting Andrew as a spiritual model for the Advent season?
Our wait nearly over, our hearts are filled with joy as we pray:
O Emmanuel, our King, and Giver of Law:
come to save us, Lord our God!
To You we look, Lord Jesus, as we humbly await your coming at Christmas and pray:
O King of all nations and keystone of the Church:
come and save man, whom you formed from the dust!
On this, the shortest day of the year (in the northern hemisphere), we look with longing to our true Light, as we pray:
O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice:
come and shine on those who dwell in darkness
and in the shadow of death!
In part because we so often feel captive to the demands and stresses of a commercialized holiday season, we pray:
O Key of David,
opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!
As Advent draws to a close, our impatience grows…and we pray:
O Root of Jesse’s stem,
sign of God’s love for all his people:
come to save us without delay!
With Us Still 