O Antiphons

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The seven "O Antiphons" (also called the "Greater Antiphons" or "Major Antiphons") are prayers that come from the Breviary's Vespers during the Octave before Christmas Eve, a time which is called the "Golden Nights." The O Antiphons are the source of the lyrics of the Advent song "Veni, veni Emmanuel". (see previous post)

Each Antiphon begins with "O" and addresses Jesus with a unique title which comes from the prophecies of Isaias and Micheas (Micah), and whose initials, when read backwards, form an acrostic for the Latin "Ero Cras" which means "Tomorrow I come." Those titles for Christ are:

Sapientia
Adonai
Radix Jesse
Clavis David
Oriens
Rex Gentium
Emmanuel

Below are the O Antiphons in both English and Latin. One is prayed each evening at Vespers time (around sunset).


December 17

Wisdom that comest out of the mouth of the Most High, that reachest from one end to another, and orderest all things mightily and sweetly, come to teach us the way of prudence!


Latin
O Sapientia, quæ ex ore Altissimi prodiisti, attingens a fine usque ad finem, fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia: veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiæ.


December 18

Adonai, and Ruler of the house of Israel, Who didst appear unto Moses in the burning bush, and gavest him the law in Sinai, come to redeem us with an outstretched arm!

Latin
O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel, qui Moysi in igne flammæ rubi apparuisti, et ei in Sina legem dedisti: veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.



December 19

Root of Jesse, which standest for an ensign of the people, at Whom the kings shall shut their mouths, Whom the Gentiles shall seek, come to deliver us, do not tarry.

Latin
O Radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum, super quem continebunt reges os suum, quem Gentes deprecabuntur: veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.


December 20

Key of David, and Sceptre of the house of Israel, that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth, come to liberate the prisoner from the prison, and them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.

Latin
O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel; qui aperis, et nemo claudit; claudis, et nemo aperit: veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.


December 21

Dayspring, Brightness of the everlasting light, Son of justice, come to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death!

Latin
O Oriens, splendor lucis æternæ, et sol justitiæ: veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis.





December 22

King of the Gentiles, yea, and desire thereof! O Corner-stone, that makest of two one, come to save man, whom Thou hast made out of the dust of the earth!

Latin
O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum, lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum: veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo formasti.





December 23

Emmanuel, our King and our Law-giver, Longing of the Gentiles, yea, and salvation thereof, come to save us, O Lord our God!

Latin
O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum: veni ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster.

December 24

Mini Jerusalems

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+Our society teaches us that Christmas is about being with family and giving gifts. The Blessed Mother knows that Christmas is not meant to be about that. Christmas is the time we celebrate the birth of the God-man, her son, at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It is about the King of Kings that showed as Isaiah professied, that the rulers of this world and all the material goods are coming to nothing --- but that what brings life and true joy is Christ. To the very extent that we lack this complete trust and hope in the one, true God, we are like mini Jerusalems, hoping for a messiah to bring us temporal comforts, when really we should be thinking of the real Messiah -- who rules heaven and earth, and promises us a heavenly kingdom. This trust in Christ can come only if we are in a state of grace through the Sacraments (for us Baptised Catholics, that means Confession, Holy Communion), along with preparing to receive our Lord in Communion by renouncing our attachment to sin and the things of this world. Christ let's even his own people suffer in this life that they might come to a better understanding of how he suffered for us. He has given us to his own mother, and wants us to remember also her sufferings. These are jewels that are our inheritance as Catholics. We are part of the world's greatest Royalty, and we owe it to our King and Queen to think of them and their sacrifices that we may know how best to serve them. There are keys in the mysteries of their suffering which unlock the questions we have in what we are to do in order to serve God in our sufferings.

It was, afterall, God who loved you first and is waiting for you to come closer to Him in this life.


O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Day-star, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads to Thee,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come to lead us Adonai,
Who to the tribes on height of Sinai
In ancient times did'st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave!
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel. Amen.+

The Absolute Character of Music

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+"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted." from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice

Music, in the time of Shakespeare, was very simple and pure. Even the popular melodies were seen not merely as fit, but as inspirations to some of the greatest works of religious works by the great polyphonic composers. Such composers as Victoria and Palestrina took from the popular folk melodies in order to build upon their dignified and glorious works for the Sacrifice of the Mass.

Dignity is something that was always inheritant to the music that was well-loved, only up until this past century did that start to change. When the sexual revolution pushed and shoved its way into the culture, deeming any obstacle as "repressed" or lacking an "open mind", it began the slow, extracation of dignity from being at the corner stone of art in general.

What does one have when there is 'music' without dignity? It lacks nobility, and is, in a word, pompous, because it seeks to exhault itself. This is ugly because it is vain. Vanity is a vice as it causes the destruction of dignity. "It is the absolute character of music: nobility," is an excellent quote by one of the greatest musicians of the past century, Artur Rubinstein.

Then why has popular music and art in general, has largely become pompous and vain? It is because our culture lacks the virtues that inspire higher art, even it lacks the comprehension of what art is meant to do. Art should be an exhaltation of the human condition. It should, therefore, have dignity and nobility at its heart. Where ever such is lacking, there will be the lack of these qualities, and in their place will be philosophies which pose in such a manner to exault, but will only bear bad fruits. Fruits that grow to maturity and ripen are those that come from a plant with strong roots to support it, such as with tradition that proves to support virtues over time.

Is it no wonder how cultures who have suffered from tyranny have music that not only expresses well the dynamics of the human condition, but also, in its dignity, seeks to exhault it? It is not a genetic thing, but a memory passed on to generations, of those who were lost to war and suffering.

Rubinstein remarks about dignity in a lesson he gives some piano performance students. The piece used for the discussion is Ballade No. 1, by Chopin. The song is not music, it is not as the composer intended, unless it is played with this dignity. The dynamics are not for showing off of the skills, but are incidental, and subtle, to be cast within the structure of the melodies. Many performers miss this because they do not have at their own philosophies those same philosophies that were at the core of society at the time of Chopin's life. Grant it, Chopin did not live these out perfectly, but the fashion of the music yet at the time was still at a high level of artistry, for it to be favored. Dignity was still the norm. (Unfortunately, notoriety tends to lead souls away from virtue, as was the lesson Chopin had learned and sought to express with this particular piece, where he mourns both the loss of his hometown to war and lost friendship.) What a stark contrast when we compare the music of the baroque or classical period, or even the romantic period --- to the majority of what passes today as "music"! Today, the underlining philosophy is: Look at me. Very sad, indeed.

St. Cecilia, on the evening yet of your feast day, pray for us.

Here is the 3rd video of 3 showing the famous lesson by Artur Rubinstein. By this time, it has been 6 years since the great artist lost his sight, and he struggles to even see the keys. Listen to towards the end of the clip, where Rubinstein explains what is the "absolute character of music":

Karácsonyi Bölcsődal

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Here is a beautiful choral piece by an amazing composer, Lajos Bardos. It is in Hungarian, and has that type of salvic-folk feel. The lyrics are about the Christ child being warmed by the virgin arm and lovely, warm face of the Blessed Mother on the night of his birth.

There are many interesting stories about this composer. One is when Budapest was when it was occupied by the Nazis, just before it was finally declared a communist country. The people were not allowed to sing Christian music, yet it was almost Christmas even. The already well-known conductor/composer, now teacher, rebelled in a subtle way, because he knew that music was the key to uniting the people, and helping them to remember what mattered most. They were permitted to sing of Israel, ironically, since the Nazis put to death "between 20% and 40% of Greater Budapest's 250,000 Jewish inhabitants" from 1944 and early 1945." The song he conducted one cold, dark evening before Christmas? Veni, Veni Emmanuel. I imagine it was most likely Kodaly's version, since Bardos was very much a student of Kodaly (as well as he was inspired by Bela Bartok). The story continues that as the choir sang, many, many Jews from outside on the street came in to the church to listen. (In Advent, look for this version of Veni, Veni in the upper right hand margin of this blog.)

+Requiescent in pace, dona ei requiem.+

Here is a Karácsonyi Bölcsődal, "Christmas Lullaby":

Silent Monks Sing "Halleluia Chorus"

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