The “O” Antiphons are a tradition dating back more than a thousand years. During vespers (the evening prayer service) on the seven final days of Advent, seven prefaces with seven different images of Jesus - all drawn from the Hebrew scriptures - were chanted before and after Mary’s Magnificat, which comes up in this Sunday's Gospel reading
Each antiphon begins with an “O” and then an image: Wisdom, Lord (“Adonai”), Root of Jesse, Key of David, Radiant Dawn (or “Dayspring”), King of Nations, and Emmanuel (“With Us”). Most Christians know the tradition through the Advent hymn, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”
I have been reminded of Jesus as a wisdom teacher many times during this Advent season. Often we take wisdom and knowledge to be the same thing but they are different. Knowledge comes from the facts known by a person. Wisdom is the combination of experience and knowledge, with the power of applying them or soundness of judgement in a person.
Wisdom has often been more counter-intuitive than I would have expected.
O Wisdom
coming towards us on the breath of God,
seeping into every crack and corner of the world with strength and gentleness to order everything just right:
Come now and show us the way to health and wholeness.
Lord draw near.
Draw near and save
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