It is folly to the world wrapped in darkness, but our pleas to God to send us Immanuel find their answer in God’s naturally ordered creation by sending us a baby.
O Rex Gentium: O King of the Nations
Traditional Antiphon O King of the nations, and their desire, The Cornerstone making both one: Come and save the human race, which you fashioned from clay. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel O come, Desire of nations, bindin one the hearts of all mankind;Bid thou our sad divisions cease,And be thyself our King of Peace. It…
Festive Events of Advent and Christmas in the ACNA
Anglican Compass is excited to showcase a variety of holiday-themed events hosted by churches across the Anglican Church in North America.
O Oriens: O Dayspring
December 21st arrives draped in shadow. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice—the shortest day of the year and the longest night—often falls on this day. It’s a time when darkness seems to have truly overcome the light. Thus, it is particularly fitting that the Church assigns O Oriens, the O Antiphon naming Christ as…
Hymn Guide: Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming
The image of a rose blooming in winter, emerging from a tender stem, reflects both the beauty and the vulnerability of baby Jesus and his mother Mary.
O Clavis David: O Key of David
O Clavis David, meaning “O Key of David,” proclaims God’s appointed leadership of Christ Jesus as the fulfillment of the hopes and promises given to the dynasty of King David.
O Radix Jesse: O Root of Jesse
To many of us modern folks, the antiphon that begins with “O Root of Jesse” seems, perhaps, out of place among the others in the sequence. Poetic, sure. “Biblical,” of course. But the rest of the “O Antiphons” appear to emphasize key—sometimes eternal—attributes of who God is.
O Adonai: O Lord of Might
The O Antiphons give seven Messianic titles to Jesus. The first title, Wisdom (Sapientia), evokes God’s creation as described in Genesis and Proverbs. The second title, Adonai, derives from the second book of the Bible, Exodus, in which God delivers his people. Traditional Antiphon O Adonai, and leader of the House of Israel, who appeared…
O Sapientia: O Wisdom From On High
In the original O Antiphons, and still to this day on the church calendar, “O Wisdom” was the first of the seven
The Jerusalem Declaration & Statement: Apples of Gold in a Setting of Silver
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver. Proverbs 25:11 In their statement that “The Future Has Arrived,” the Primates of the Gafcon movement have declared: Our Gafcon Primates gathered this hour to fulfil our mandate to reform the Anglican Communion, as expressed in the Jerusalem Statement of 2008. To be a member…