Thursday of the Third Week of Advent
O come, O come, thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai's height
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud and majesty, and awe.
Yesterday we began the ‘O’ Antiphons, alerting us that Christmas is only an octave (8 days) away. Each day begins with the invocation ‘O,’ recalling the ancient longing of the chosen people for the coming of a deliverer, invoking various titles for Christ seven days before Christmas Eve. They harken back to the yearning for the First Coming, and echo the same expectation for Emmanuel to come at Parousia, his Second Coming.
‘O’ Antiphons take us through salvation history chronologically from before creation itself to the Nativity of our Lord:
- December 17: O Sapientia (O Wisdom)
- December 18: O Adonai (O Lord and Ruler)
- December 19: O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse)
- December 20: O Clavis David (O Key of David)
- December 21: O Oriens (O Dayspring)
- December 22: O Rex Gentium (O King of Nations)
- December 23: O Emmanuel (O God with Us)
These antiphons are the basis of our ancient carol “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” (found here).
Each day’s antiphon is sung before and after the Magnificat canticle in the evening prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours, and also in the Alleluia verse (always sung) before the Gospel at Mass. Once we reach December 23, the backwards acrostic of the Latin initials of the Christological titles spell ERO CRAS: Tomorrow I will come.
How rich our liturgical life is when we join in fully and consciously. Let us enter joyfully all week into the great mystery of the Incarnation in time and eternity. And let us keep the Ero Cras alertness of Advent as we live our Christian lives. The holidays can be stressful — especially if we seek perfection (let us remember that the first Christmas was not perfect, either). When small irritations come our way let us view them as tiny and insignificant as they are in the face of the astounding everlasting gift about to dawn upon us.
O come O come thou Lord of Might!
—Timothy J. Cronin