Worship and Evangelization Outreach / Erin Jeffries

O Antiphon prayers remind us of the coming of the Prince of Peace

Dec. 17 began a period of heightened anticipation in our Advent season. One of the ways we sense this growing expectation is in the Liturgy of the Hours. The O Antiphon prayers are chanted or recited at Vespers (evening prayer), prior to the Magnificat. These antiphons begin on Dec. 17 and end on Dec. 23, which is the last Vespers of Advent.

Each of the O Antiphon prayers says “Come.” Such a little word to sum up the experiences of anticipation, invitation, longing, and even crying out. In Advent in a particular way, we make our own the anticipation of God’s people, waiting for a savior, that began with Adam and Eve.

The longing and urgency feels especially strong this year in the midst of loss and loneliness, stress, illness, social and political unrest, and any number of divisions even in the midst of the Church.

Jesus was, is and always will be the answer to our desires. The challenge is to allow ourselves to experience the waiting, the expectation and, dare I say it, the uncertainty. Moreover, the challenge is to not rush through the waiting to Christmas, ultimately giving up the joy of Jesus’ coming for something of our own making, which will never last.

As a way of entering into the waiting, try praying evening prayer from the Liturgy of the Hours if you don’t already pray it. If you don’t have the four-volume set or Christian Prayer book, you can find it online at www.ibreviary.com/m2/breviario.php as well as on a few different apps on your phone. But if that is not feasible, here are some of the O Antiphons you can use for reflection.

O Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet gentle care. Come and show your people the way to salvation.

O Key of David, O royal Power of Israel, controlling at your will the gate of heaven: come, break down the prison walls of death for those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death; and lead your captive people into freedom.

O Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people, come and set us free, Lord our God.

If this sounds a little familiar, it probably is! These antiphons are also taken up in the verses of the hymn, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” which is another great way to pray, reflect and give voice to our own need and longing, especially during the final days of Advent.

All that said, while we are waiting for Jesus to come, participants at our recent Advent gathering for adults with disabilities were quick to point out that Jesus is already here, within us. And because he is within us, we can bring him to others, and all of us could think of times when others were Jesus to us. They suggested we do this by taking care of each other, forgiving and being forgiven, being present to one another and volunteering. So in the words of a song we shared during our retreat “Let there be peace, let it start in me.”
 

(Erin Jeffries is the coordinator of Ministry to Persons with Special Needs in the archdiocesan Office of Catechesis. She can be reached at 317‑236-1448 or ejeffries@archindy.org.) †