Advent – Page 3 – Spirit Reflections

O Antiphons ~ Key of David

December 20, 2021

O Key of David and scepter of Israel, what you open no one else can close again; what you close no one can open. O come to lead the captives from prison; free those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

Five days before the birth of the Light, in the O Antiphons, the ancient prayer-song of waiting and expectation, the fourth title given to the Christ (or Light, or Love, if you prefer) is Key of David, as described in Isaiah 22:22: I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and no one shall shut; he shall shut, and no one shall open.

What do keys do? They open doors. And, they lock doors. Keys are symbolic of power and ownership. To have a key to something is to have the authority to access it. To own a key enables us, both literally and figuratively, to let someone in or keep someone out.

In this season of longing, I acknowledge the feelings (captives) I have locked in my heart–former wounds, fresh hurts, old records, new disappointments– that might be preventing me from unlocking the door to Love and Light and to others, and I lift them like rising candle smoke. Some have languished in that dark prison a long time; others are just arriving. Keys are powerful. How we use them matters. On my own, I cannot turn the key to release them, but I can lift my desire for Grace to do so.

Prayer: O Key of David, the promise you carry is that you will unlock the doors that hold our captives in darkness, that you will set them free, and so set us free. We pray for all those who hold keys to power and privilege to turn toward your Light and hand you their keys. We pray for ourselves, as well, knowing those captives that need to be let out of the darkness and into your Light. O come, O come, and empower us to trust you with our keys. May it be so.

O come, Thou Key of David, come
And open wide our heav’nly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.

Blessings to you ~ Rosemary 20rosepoet20@gmail.com

Picture credit Pixabay

O Antiphons ~ Root of Jesse

December 19, 2021

O Root of Jesse, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples; kings fall silent before you; nations bow down and worship you. O come to deliver us and do not delay.

In the O Antiphons, the ancient prayer-song of waiting and expectation, the third title given to the Christ (or Light, or Love, if you prefer) is Root of Jesse, as described by the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, in 11:1: “And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root.” Jesse was the father of King David, the greatest king in Jewish history. The Light was prophesied to come out of this particular lineage of royalty, faithfulness, and humanity.

This morning, as I perused the headlines (something that I limit for my own soul’s well-being), I realized that for the second year in a row, we will not be attending Christmas Eve Worship. The Omicron variant is in our state, along with the ongoing presence of Delta, and no mask or vaccine mandate is in force. The service will be full of people and guests whose vaccination status I cannot insure. Our daughter, who lives alone, will be traveling from Boston, and we cannot take a risk of exposing her and sending her home sick. As a minister, missing the celebration of the birth of Christ, Love, and Light (again) is difficult.

So, the image of being rooted in someone bigger than me, someone more faithful than me, someone more loving than me, someone ever-present, touches me deeply this advent of looking and longing in a world where the tiniest of viruses, of beings, has taught us that we are not in control. The promise is that from this root of Jesse a flower will blossom. Roots grow in darkness, yet from the darkness comes great beauty. I hold that promise to my heart with great anticipation.

Prayer: In this long season of continuing darkness, pandemic, suspicion, division, fear, doubt, and anger, we call on you, Root of Jesse, to ground us in wisdom and in hope, in faithfulness and in love. Whatever our beliefs, whatever name we use for God, help us to hold fast to you and to give our loyalty to you. Use us, we ask, to help make the flowering a part of our lives in a world that so desperately needs your presence and your grace. May it be so.

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.

Blessings to you ~ Rosemary 20rosepoet20@gmail.com

Photo credit Pixabay

O Antiphons ~ Adonai

December 18, 2021

O Adonai and leader of Israel, you appeared to Moses in a burning bush and you gave him the law on Mount Sinai. O come and stretch out your mighty hand to redeem us.

In the O Antiphons, the ancient song of waiting and expectation, the second title given to the Christ (or Light, or Love, if you prefer) is Adonai, the Hebrew word for Lord. “Lord” is not a title Americans are used to or even really appreciate because it sets someone higher than us, or apart from us, in this land of mythical equality. We don’t want to be beholden to a lord. Yet its meaning here holds much relevance for us today because we are in dire need of “someone higher than us,” any of us, to redeem us. Now.

Pandemic. Inflation. Division. Anger. Fear. Tornado. Fire. Destruction. Name it, and we are walking in the midst of it. This winter season of waiting is a time for us to acknowledge our human need for redemption from all the noise and turmoil around us and within us that threatens to drown us, a need so great that no president or priest can save us. We need THE Lord.

This antiphon is based on the story of Moses and the burning bush in the Old Testament. If we listen closely, we notice that the Lord did not come down and lead the people out of slavery, but the Lord indeed knew who would. Moses himself tried to squirm and shirk his way out of that calling even while the Lord was empowering Moses to do what needed to be done. And so God’s people were set free because of love, the love of the Lord and Moses’ love of the Lord and the Lord’s people.

I wonder this Advent where the Lord wants me to go, who the Lord wants me to assist, how the Lord wants to use me in setting others free. Yes, we need the mighty arm of Love to redeem us, and we are also invited to be willing vessels of that Love.

Prayer: In this long season of continuing darkness, pandemic, suspicion, division, fear, doubt, and anger, we call on you, O Adonai, to claim us and protect us. You have promised never to leave us alone, and you have called us to be your presence in this oft-broken world. Just as you empowered Moses to heed your call, so give us the eyes to see and the courage to go into the dark places where your Light most needs to shine. You are Love and love overcomes all fear (1 John 4:18). Grant us in this season of gift-giving the gift of love and then embolden us to practice it.

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.

Blessings to you ~ Rosemary 20rosepoet20@gmail.com

O Antiphons ~ Wisdom

December 17, 2021

O Wisdom, you come forth from the mouth of the Most High. You create the universe and hold all things together with strength and sweetness. O come to teach us the way of truth.

Many of us are familiar with the Advent hymn, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, but not as many of us are familiar with the O Antiphons, on which this hymn from 1861 was based. The O Antiphons originated in the Roman Catholic Church sometime between the 6^th and 8^th centuries as a prelude to Christmas Eve. They are the containers of ancient praise, as relevant now as they were then. Each of the seven antiphons (short refrains) that are used as names for the Christ (or Light, or Love, as you prefer) are sung on the nights between Dec. 17 and Dec. 23 at a service called Vespers. They are matched with their relevant scripture verses and include the following names: O Wisdom, O Lord, O Root of Jesse, O Key of David, O Rising Sun, O King of the Nations, O Emmanuel.

Today, the first antiphon is O Wisdom, taken from this scripture verse from the Old Testament of the Bible: The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear. (Isaiah 11:2-3)

Prayer: In this long season of continuing darkness, pandemic, suspicion, division, fear, doubt, and anger, we seek Wisdom and the way of Truth. O Wisdom, build in us a desire for you and open our hearts to receive you. Quiet us enough to seek your counsel before we respond or act. Help us to stay rooted in you instead of rooting ourselves in the many opinions of this world. Inspire us to listen not only with our minds but even more so with our hearts. Grant us in this season of gift-giving the gift of Wisdom and then embolden us to practice it. May it be so.

“Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel, shall come to thee, O Israel.”

Blessings to you ~ Rosemary 20rosepoet20@gmail.com

The Waiting ~ A Poem of Advent

For all who wait in hope for the coming Light. Blessings, Rosemary

The Waiting

For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Do not fear. I will help you.” Isaiah 41:13

O, Isaiah, ancient prophet of doom, prophet of ancient hope,
your proclamations resound like cymbals
jarring this still and frozen December heart,
this frozen and still December world.
Like your own people, we are waiting
in this season of ancient hope, waiting
through each shortening hour
waiting while our divisions grow wider
than the separate waters
of the Red Sea.
We wait for your promise that the lion
will lie down with the lamb.
We wait for the winds of your words
to blow injustices away like chaff,
for the threshing sledge to make even
the high and mighty palaces of the
blind and powerful.
Even as sunlight fades into shadows
we wait in the darkness for your springs
of water to wash over the dry land
of poverty, for war to be
no more.
We wait for the fragrance of the cedar and myrtle,
the fruit of the olive, to inhabit
the deserts of our wilderness
where anger, fear, and hate take root.
We wait for the open rivers on the barest
of heights to pour down and bathe us,
to wash us clean, to make us new.
O, Isaiah, ancient prophet of doom,
prophet of ancient hope,
like your people we wait
in this ancient season of hope,
lifting our prayers,
lighting our simple candles–
the flames as old as God–
our single act of resistance against the night, our right hand
clasping your promise.

Darkness into Light: A Poem for Advent

“Light your candles quietly, such candles as you possess, wherever you are.” ~ Fr. Alfred Delp, martyred in Nazi Germany, age 38

As we enter the darkest time of year, my hope and prayer is that each of us will shine the light we have been given, be the light for one another.

Blessings to you ~ Rosemary 20rosepoet20@gmail.com

Candle-Prayer

In the small still shadow of a darkened morning
before the screeching of this broken world repeats,
I strike a match and set it to a stub of wick:
an offering of light being birthed yet again.

Before the screeching of this broken world repeats,
I breathe sacred flame-glow into heart, psyche, soul
an offering of light being birthed yet again,
a single, slender candle singing prayer.

I breathe sacred flame-glow into heart, psyche, soul,
imagine the brilliance of a hundred million candles
burning quietly on the edges of every dawn
before the screeching of this broken world repeats.

I strike a match and set it to a stub of wick,
my hope for this wounded world one fluttering flame,
a single, slender candle singing prayer
in the small still shadows of a darkened morning.

Light-invitation

“Light your candles quietly, such candles as you possess, wherever you are.” ~ Fr. Alfred Delp, martyred in Nazi Germany, age 38

As the daylight hours shorten and we approach a fallow time of year, many Christian denominations prepare for the season of Advent, the month-long period of waiting for the celebration of the birth of the Christ-Child, the Light of the World. Other faith traditions, such as Hindus, Jains and Sikhs, celebrate Diwali, a festival of lights, while our Jewish sisters and brothers prepare for Hannukah. Darkness calls humanity to seek the light, eon after eon.

Our current pandemic is certainly a dark place, while social and political upheaval in the United States and in other parts of the world create heavy shadows. But each of us has been given a spark of light, and this time of year, in particular, is an appropriate, and much-needed, season to reflect on how we can shine our lights together. As Father Delp, a Jesuit priest hanged for treason in Nazi Germany, invited, we are to shine humbly in whatever way our souls, spirits, psyches call us to, in whatever places and situations we find ourselves, in order to stave off the darkness and encircle our world with the healing power of light.

During this Season of Advent/Diwali/Hannukah, etc., I will be sharing my reflections on how we may be called to both wait in the darkness and to illuminate the shadows in a series called Light in a Dark Season. I invite you to join me as a Light-Bearer so that together we might spread a mantle of brightness over our wounded world.

Candle-Prayer
In the small still shadow of a darkened morning
before the screeching of this broken world repeats,
I strike a match and set it to a stub of wick:
an offering of light being birthed yet again.

Before the screeching of this broken world repeats,
I breathe sacred flame-glow into heart, psyche, soul
an offering of light being birthed yet again,
a single, slender candle singing prayer.

I strike a match and set it to a stub of wick,
my hope for this wounded world one fluttering flame,
a single, slender candle singing prayer
in the small still shadows of a darkened morning.