O Night Divine

Celebrating Advent :: with togetherness

(coloring Christmas pictures before bedtime)

Second Sunday of Advent

Almighty and merciful God, may no earthly undertaking hinder those who set out in haste to meet your Son, but may our learning of heavenly wisdom gain us admittance to his company. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Celebrating Advent :: with music

Celebrating Advent:: with light

An occasional pictorial for your enjoyment/inspiriation. If you choose to join please leave a link in the comments.

Advent is a Gift

I can't imagine living in a family that doesn't celebrate Advent. To skip Advent? It would be harder for me and my children to get through December to Christmas if we had nothing to feast on during the month.

My boys are so joyful, embracing all the Advent traditions and Liturgy. All the liturgy, all the customs, all the songs just marry into their eager anticipation for Christmas. The Church's remembrance of the long awaited Messiah matches their longing for Christmas. It doesn't feed the frenzy, but it nourishes their souls, and makes them filled. They are satisfied because their longing is matched and given nourishment.

They are dancing with joy, peeking in all our Advent boxes, remembering all the treasures from last year: the calendars, the creche, the empty manger, the Advent wreath, the candles, the Jesse Tree....

The New Year noisemakers are sounding, the boys making their own "Happy Advent and Happy New Liturgical Year" rejoicing.

They are singing all around the house different Advent songs: O Come, O Come Emmanuel, People Look East, Prepare, and Light One Candle.

The oldest lights the Advent wreath, and emits a joyful sigh as he watches the candle burn and sings his favorite Advent hymn, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

In living in this moment, imitating the child, all those excess worries that the preparation for Christmas brings disappear. Can I become like a little child? Can I be joyful and worry free like my little children?

I am pondering these moments all in my heart. Advent is such a gift. And as a mother, I need to recognize that gift and accept it. I need to embrace it.

 

Advent Wreath Prayers

I've mentioned before that we incorporate Salvation History Figures in our Advent Wreath -- Isaiah, John the Baptist, Joseph, and Mary. We light our Advent Wreath every evening at dinner. We gather around the table, my husband reads the prayers for the wreath, we all pray the Scripture verse of the week (the Salvation History quote) and then as the wreath is being lighted we sing a verse of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

This Sunday begins the official beginning of the new English translation of the Roman Missal. To recognize this great gift, I've incorporated the Advent Sunday Collect prayers from the new translation for the Advent Wreath prayers. I've also included the themes and persons that are highlighted for each week of Advent.

Happy New Year!

Download Advent Wreath Prayers New Translation 2011

The Nativity Story - In The 21st Century

Thank you to Chris Volpe for sharing.

O King....Errata

This morning my son found a glaring error on the prayer for today from the O Antiphon Prayer Companion. I have corrected it, and you can download the corrected file from the previous post. My apologies about the error!

"The Trees of the Wood Sing for Joy"

As Mary has noted in the these virtual pages, the Christmas Tree is one of,  if not the most recognizable symbols of Christmas.  They are everywhere, indoors and out, and you'll probably enjoy as much as I have a new little meditation on their beauty and purpose. 

I picked up a library copy the other day of:  The Blessing of Christmas by the prolific author Joseph Ratzinger ( Pope Benedict XVI) and published by Ignatius Press.  The first part deals with the challenges of illness but includes a very special section on the Christmas tree from which we all might gain a new insight or two.

The pope reminds us that almost all of our Advent customs are rooted in Scripture.  "Here, the faithful people have, as it were, translated Scripture into visible signs"  (I just love that thought).  Of all the customs of Advent and Christmas I would have thought The Tree would have the least connection to Scriptual roots,  but thankfully I was wrong.

"For example, we read in Psalm 96:  'Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy before the Lord, for He comes.' "  Expanding on this and other verses, the liturgy proclaims: " 'The mountains and hills will sing praise before God, and all the trees of the wood will clap their hands, for the Lord, the ruler is coming to rule for ever.' "

Then as I read the next paragraph, those goosebumps pour over me as they so often do when I perceive a new level of the sacramental nature of the world: 

"The Christmas trees we decorate are simply an attempt to make these words visible.  The Lord is here--our ancestors believed this and knew this, and so the trees had to go out to meet him, they had to bow down before him, the trees themselves had to become a song of praise to their Lord.  The same certainty of faith led them to make the words about the singing mountains and hills a reality.  They gave a voice to the mountains, and their singing resounds down through the centuries into our own days, letting us sense something of the nearness of the Lord--for it is only he who could give men such melodies."

So as you decorate your tree or look upon the finished product tonight, contemplate the nearness of the Lord, who through time, our ancestors in faith, this liturgical season called Advent and the simple tree, comes in a myriad of sacramental ways to call all people (even those who don't know the meaning of this season or of their tree) "to bow down before Him."

Here is a Christmas tree blessing for the home for you to use, even if you have already decorated your tree.

Praying the O Antiphons

Crossposted with Family Feast and Feria

The last seven days before Christmas (starting December 17) marks the beginning of the "O" Antiphons, the seven jewels of our liturgy. Each evening in Vespers the antiphon is sung or recited at the Magnificat. Dating back to the fourth century, these antiphons address Christ with seven magnificent Messianic titles, based on the Old Testament prophecies and types of Christ. They sum up in excellence the longing of the Redeemer, and we join the antiphons and echo the prayer “Come!” They are entitled “O” because each begins with an “O”.

I’m very fond of this time of Advent. This is a little “pick-me-up” that helps us refocus. Our Advent endeavors and focus haven’t always come to fruition. The O Antiphons remind me that Christ comes in 7 days, and although the outward preparations can cause a frenzy, the O Antiphons beckon me to relax and invite Christ to come into my heart. The urgent “Come!” reminds me of a child’s eager and impatient waiting for Christmas Eve.

The antiphons themselves are not always easy to relate to children. There are many different craft ideas to mark these days. No matter how they are presented, my intention is to unite our family’s prayers with the whole Church. The antiphons can be found in the Vespers, and also the Alleluia verse at Mass. The "O" Antiphons are the verses for the ancient hymn O Come, O Come Emmanuel. The first letter of the Messianic titles: Emmanuel, Rex, Oriens, Clavis, Radix, Adonai, Sapientia-spell out Latin words ERO CRAS, meaning, "Tomorrow, I will come." (The translations below are the traditional antiphons; they do not match exactly with the current Divine Office or Alleluia verse.)

Keeping this in mind, we are adding to our prayers the Antiphon, Magnificat, and singing the corresponding verse of the O Come Emmanuel. Adding elements to our meals is another aspect of incorporating the O Antiphons. One way is reviving the old custom of monasteries of different monks furnishing extra treats on these days to the members of the community. As Florence Berger describes:

The gardener gave the community some of his finest dried or preserved fruits on Dec 19 when he called on Christ: 'O Root of Jesse, come to deliver us and tarry not.' The cellarer unlocked the best wine for his treat as he called: 'O Key of David, come, and come quickly.' Finally, on Dec 23, the abbot gave his extra gift to the brothers. Expense accounts which are still extant show how generous and extensive a list of foods were used on the abbot's 'O day.'" — Cooking for Christ, 1949

Our family did this as I was growing up, and it was one of my favorite Advent memories, especially having all the family members involved in a surprise. Depending on the size of your family, each day can be "assigned" to a family member, usually youngest to oldest, so that they can provide a special treat for that O Antiphon day. The surprise usually revolves around dinner, but it does not need to be too fancy or a food treat. The best part is leaving it up to the member to keep it a secret until dinner time, except possibly with some help from Mom and Dad. I’m also incorporating different ways to incorporate the symbols of the antiphons in our meals or dessert.

If we try to make our own the thought of these antiphons on their proper days, letting their ardent aspirations dominate our prayer life, our minds and hearts will surely be more closely attuned to the mind and heart of the Church as she prepares for the coming of her King. (With Christ Through the Year, Rev. Bernard Strasser, O.S.B., 1947).

I included some picture study for our O Antiphon prayer pages. Enjoy!

Download O antiphons prayer companion