O Virgo Virginum (December 23)

The final Great "O" Antiphon, O Virgo Virginum ("O Virgin of Virgins") is, in the Anglican world, sung tonight at Evensong, before and after the Magnificat.

O Virgin of Virgins, how shall this be? For neither before thee was any like thee, nor shall there be after. Daughters of Jerusalem, why marvel ye at me? That which ye behold is a divine mystery.

Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat:




Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the beautiful Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

Blessed Christmas to all.

O Emmanuel (December 22)

O Emmanuel is the Antiphon upon Magnificat for tonight at Vespers:

O Emmanuel, our King and Lawgiver, Desire of all nations and their Salvation: Come and save us, O Lord our God.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.




Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat:




Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the beautiful Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

Here's Zoltán Kodály's gorgeous "Veni, veni, Emmanuel," sung here by L'Accorche-Choeur, Ensemble vocal Fribourg:

Veni, Veni Emmanuel is a synthesis of the great "O Antiphons" that are used for Vespers during the octave before Christmas (Dec. 17-23). These antiphons are of ancient origin and date back to at least the ninth century.

O Rex Gentium (December 21)

Anglicans sing O Rex Gentium ("O King of the Nations") tonight at Vespers as the Antiphon upon Magnificat.  (If they're not singing an Antiphon in the honor of St. Thomas, whose feast day it is today, that is.)

O King of Nations, and their Desire; the Cornerstone, who makest both one: Come and save mankind, whom thou formedst of clay.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.




Interesting, I think, that Christ's title here is at once "King of Nations," and also "their Desire" - and that he is the cornerstone who integrates them into one thing.   This is the same idea you find in Psalm 119: "O Lord, how I love Thy Law!"  It says that the ultimate of end of faith is to love and desire God's Rule; this King does not lay burdens on His people, but comes to heal and to fulfill.  A small phrase that does a lot of work; it's really a succinct statement of the belief that Creation is good - but fallen.  

The "cornerstone" referred to here has many Scriptural sources. Likely the first, and very influential, mention is found in Psalm 118:22:

The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone.

Isaiah 28:6 talks, too, of a "cornerstone":

Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’

Matthew 21:42 refers back to the Psalm (as do Mark and Luke in their Gospels):

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?

The same reference to the Psalm is found in Acts 4:11, as Peter and John talk to the Sanhedrin:

This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.

And Paul harkens back to the Isaiah - but with a Pauline twist, adding in a bit of text from Isaiah 8:14! - in Romans 9:33:

As it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself:




Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the beautiful Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

O Oriens (December 20)

The Great "O" Antiphon O Oriens ("O Dayspring") is sung tonight at Vespers as the Antiphon upon Magnificat.

O Day-Spring, Brightness of the Light everlasting, and Sun of righteousness: Come and enlighten them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.




Oriens is Latin for "East" - and also refers to "the Morning Star" (either Venus, or perhaps the sun). The text most likely comes from Revelation 22:16, part of the "epilogue" of the book and one of the very last verses in the Bible:

12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.

20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.

Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself.




Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the beautiful Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

Here's something about the Great "O" Antiphons from the website "The Hymns and Carols of Christmas":

The antiphons date back at least to the reign of Charlemagne (771-814), and the 439 lines of the English poem Christ, by Cynewulf (c. 800), are described as a loose translation and elaboration of the Antiphons.  One source stated that Boethius (c. 480-524) made a slight reference to them, thereby suggesting their presence at that time.  Julian reports that two 11^th century copies can be found in manuscripts in the British Museum and the Bodleian. The usage of the "O Antiphons" was so prevalent in monasteries that the phrases, "Keep your O" and "The Great O Antiphons" were common parlance.

At least two — and up to five — additional verses were later added to the original seven.   However, it is clear that these seven were designed as a group, since their initial letters (ignoring the 'O' that precedes each line) spell out the reverse acrostic 'SARCORE' — 'ero cras', that is, "I shall be [with you] tomorrow."

According to some sources, by the 12th or 13^th century, but no later than the eighteenth century, five of the verses had been put together to form the verses of a single hymn, with the refrain "Gaude, gaude, Emmanuel nascetur pro te, Israel" ("Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel; Shall come to thee, O Israel") (there was no refrain in the original Latin chant). The earliest known metrical form of the "O" Antiphons was a Latin version in an Appendix of Psalteriolum Cantionum Catholicarum, (Cologne, 1710, from the Tridentine rite).

In 1851, it was translated by and published in Rev. John Mason Neale’s Medieval Hymns. The original title was "Draw nigh, draw nigh! Immanuel." It was revised and published in 1854 in Neale and Thomas Helmore’s second edition of Hymnal Noted with the more familiar "O Come, O Come Emmanuel." "Emmanuel" (or "Immanuel") is the name of the Messiah as prophesied by the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah (see Isaiah 7:14, quoted in Matthew 1:23). There have been numerous other translations, notably by Thomas Alexander Lacey and Henry Sloane Coffin.

English prose translations are by Cardinal John Henry Newman from Tracts for the Times, No. 75 (Vol.3), pp. 183, 206-207, as quoted by Alfred S. Cook, The Christ Of Cynewulf, pp. 71-72. "Alternate Prose Translations" are also provided; translator unknown.

Scriptural citations from Fr. William Saunders, "What Are the ’O Antiphons’?" (and also under the title "A Seven-Fold Announcement"), and Cook, The Christ of Cynewulf, pp. 72-114.

O Clavis David (December 19)

O Clavis David ("O Key of David") gets sung tonight at Vespers as the Antiphon upon Magnificat.

O Key of David, and Scepter of the house of Israel; that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth, and no man openeth: come, and bring forth from the prisionhouse the captive, who sitteth in darkness and in the shadow of death.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.




The text for this antiphon is found in two places in the Scriptures: Isaiah 22 and Revelation 3:

Isaiah 22:22: And the Key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.

Revelation 3:7: And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth....

Clearly, the Revelation passage is directly quoting the Isaiah; I still am not  certain of the significance of the phrase in either case, however, or whether this alludes to some earlier text or idea.  (Actually, I've been meaning to look into this for year now!)

This, though, comes from Hymns and Carols of Christmas; it's from Prosper Guéranger's The Liturgical Year, Vol. 1, Advent.

O Jesus, Son of David! heir to his throne and his power! Thou art now passing over, in Thy way to Bethlehem, the land that once was the kingdom of Thy ancestor, but now is tributary to the Gentiles. Scarce an inch of this ground which has not witnessed the miracles of the justice and mercy of Jehovah, Thy Father, to the people of the old Covenant, which is so soon to end. Before long, when Thou hast come from beneath the virginal cloud which now hides Thee, Thou wilt pass along this same road doing good, ¹ healing all manner of sickness and every infirmity, ² and yet having not where to lay Thy head. ³ Now, at least, Thy Mother’s womb affords Thee the sweetest rest, and Thou receivest from her the profoundest adoration and the tenderest love. But, dear Jesus, it is Thine own blessed will that Thou leave this loved abode. Thou hast, O eternal Light, to shine in the midst of this world’s darkness, this prison where the captive, whom Thou hast come to deliver, sits in the shadow of death. Open his prison-gates by Thy all-powerful key. And who is this captive, but the human race, the slave of error and vice? Who is this captive, but the heart of man, which is thrall to the very passions it blushes to obey? Oh! come and set at liberty the world Thou hast enriched by Thy grace, and the creatures whom Thou hast made to be Thine own brethren.

ANTIPHON TO THE ANGEL GABRIEL

O Gabriel! nuntius cœlorum, qui januis clausis ad me intrasti, et Verbum nunciasti: Concipies et paries: Emmanuel vocabitur.

O Gabriel! the messenger of heaven, who camest unto me through the closed doors, and didst announce the Word unto me : Thou shalt conceive and bear a Son, and he shall be called Emmanuel.

Notes from Dom Guéranger:

1. Acts x. 38.
2. St. Matt. iv. 23.
3. St. Luke ix. 58. 

These are certainly beautiful metaphors, in any case.


Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself.




Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the beautiful Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

O Radix Jesse (December 18)

Tonight's Great "O" Antiphon sung before and after the Magnificat is O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse).

O Root of Jesse, which standest for an ensign of the people, at whom kings shall stop their mouths, whom the Gentiles shall seek: Come and deliver us, and tarry not.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.




The text for this Antiphon comes primarily from Isaiah. The "root of Jesse" is a reference to Isaiah 11 - and the wonderful "kings shall shut their mouths" comes from the haunting "Suffering Servant" passages in Isaiah 52-53:

Behold, my servant shall act wisely;
he shall be high and lifted up,
and shall be exalted.
As many were astonished at you—
his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,
and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—
so shall he startle many nations;
kings shall shut their mouths because of him;
for that which has not been told them they see,
and that which they have not heard they understand.

Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself.




The text of the Magnificat comes from Luke 1;  here are the words to the original Latin and the modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of this beautiful canticle, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

This article, written in around 1914 by A.C.A. Hall, the Episcopal Bishop of Vermont, contains quite a bit more about the Great "O"s.

This is an "O Antiphon" page from the Poissy Antiphonal (1335-45);  it's got "O Sapientia," "O Adonai," and "O Radix Jesse" - the first three "O"s:

O Adonai (December 17)

Tonight, the Great "O" Antiphon sung at Vespers before and after the Magnificat is O Adonai:

O Adonai and Leader of the house of Israel, who appearedst in the Bush of Moses in a flame of fire, and gavest him the law in Sinai: Come and deliver us with an outstretched arm.

Here's a video of the antiphon sung in English, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal monastic order in Cambridge, MA; there's a discussion of the antiphon after it's sung.



Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself:



The text of the Magnificat comes from Luke 1;  here are the words to the original Latin and the modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of this beautiful canticle, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

Here is is a good longish article about these antiphons, and some other related ones.

About the word Adonai ('literally "my Lord," the plural form of Adon, that is, "Lord" or "Lordship"'), from the Jewish Encyclopedia:

This word occurs in the Masoretic text 315 times by the side of the Tetragram YHWH (310 times preceding and five times succeeding it) and 134 times without it. Originally an appellation of God, the word became a definite title, and when the Tetragram became too holy for utterance Adonai was substituted for it, so that, as a rule, the name written YHWH receives the points of Adonai and is read Adonai, except in cases where Adonai precedes or succeeds it in the text, when it is read Elohim....The translation of YHWH by the word Lord in the King James's and in other versions is due to the traditional reading of the Tetragrammaton as Adonai, and this can be traced to the oldest translation of the Bible, the Septuagint. About the pronunciation of the Shem ha-Meforash, the "distinctive name" YHWH, there is no authentic information. In the early period of the Second Temple the Name was still in common use, as may be learned from such proper names as Jehohanan, or from liturgical formulas, such as Halelu-Yah. At the beginning of the Hellenistic era, however, the use of the Name was reserved for the Temple.

....

Pronunciation of the Name by the Temple priests also gradually fell into disuse. Tosef., Soṭah, xiii. 8, quoted Menaḥot, 109b, and Yoma, 39b, relates that "from the time Simon the Just died [this is the traditional expression for the beginning of the Hellenistic period], the priests refrained from blessing the people with the Name"—in other words, they pronounced it indistinctly, or they mouthed or mumbled it. Thus says Tosef., Ber. vi. 23: Formerly they used to greet each other with the Ineffable Name; when the time of the decline of the study of the Law came, the elders mumbled the Name. Subsequently also the solemn utterance of the Name by the high priest on the Day of Atonement, that ought to have been heard by the priests and the people, according to the Mishnah Yoma, vi. 2, became inaudible or indistinct.

....the Greek translators of the Bible, even though some scribe might now and then write the Tetragrammaton in the archaic Hebrew form on the margin, Π I Π I, as found by Origen (see facsimile attached to article Aquila), took great care to render the name Π I Π I regularly Κυριός, Lord, as if they knew of no other reading but Adonai. Translations dependent upon the Septuagint have the same reading of the Name. Not from "superstitious fear" or misapplication of the third command of the Decalogue or of Lev. xxiv. 11, but from a reverential feeling that the Name ought not to be pronounced except with consecrated lips and to consecrated ears, the substitute "Lord" came into use. Yet this simple measure, introduced to guard the Name against profane use, formed one of the most powerful means of securing to the Biblical God the universal character with which He is invested as the Lord of Hosts and the Ruler of men and nations. YHWH, as the God of Israel, might still be taken as a tribal God; The Lord is no longer the God of one people; He is Lord of all the world, the Only One. Compare Name of God, Shem ha-Meforash, and Tetragrammaton.

This is an "O Antiphon" page from the Poissy Antiphonal (1335-45); it's got "O Sapientia," "O Adonai," and "O Radix Jesse" - the first three "O"s:

O Sapientia (December 16)

Tonight we enter that beautiful time of year, Sapientia-tide, once again.  December 16 has been designated "O Sapientia" in the Church Calendar of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer for 350 years now - but the antiphons themselves are much older.  They originated during a period no later the 8th Century, and have been sung in monasteries and convents during these days before Christmas since those very early times.

"O Sapientia" ("O Wisdom") is the Antiphon Upon Magnificat at Vespers for the 16th - and the first of 8 "Great 'O' Antiphons" for this octave before Christmas.  (Roman Catholics begin on December 17; they use one fewer antiphon. The last is sung, in each church, on the 23rd, "Christmas Eve Eve.")

The texts for the Great "O"s are taken in great part from the Prophets and from the Wisdom literature, and become mystical  proclamations, made daily during those eight days, of the imminent coming of Christ "in great humility." 

Here's O Sapientia; the English translation - in the old language - is below the video.

O Wisdom, which camest out of the mouth of the most High, and reachest from one end to another, mightily and sweetly ordering all things: Come and teach us the way of prudence.

And here, at last, is a video of the antiphon sung in English!  It comes from the Society of St. John Evangelist - an Anglican monastic order in Cambridge, MA. There is also some discussion of the antiphon after, after it's sung:




The text of O Sapientia is drawn in great part from Sirach 24.  I'm including the whole chapter here because it deserves to be read in its entirety, I think:

¹ Wisdom shall praise her own self, and shall be honoured in God, and shall glory in the midst of her people,
 ² And shall open her mouth in the churches of the most High, and shall glorify herself in the sight of his power,
 ³ And in the midst of her own people she shall be exalted, and shall be ad- mired in the holy assembly.
 ⁴ And in the multitude of the elect she shall have praise, and among the blessed she shall be blessed, saying:
 ⁵ I came out of the mouth of the most High, the firstborn before all creatures:
 ⁶ I made that in the heavens there should rise light that never faileth, and as a cloud I covered all the earth:
 ⁷ I dwelt in the highest places, and my throne is in a pillar of a cloud.
 ⁸ I alone have compassed the circuit of heaven, and have penetrated into the bottom of the deep, and have walked in the waves of the sea,
 ⁹ And have stood in all the earth: and in every people,
 ¹⁰ And in every nation I have had the chief rule:
 ¹¹ And by my power I have trodden under my feet the hearts of all the high and low: and in all these I sought rest, and I shall abide in the inheritance of the Lord.
 ¹² Then the creator of all things commanded, and said to me: and he that made me, rested in my tabernacle,
 ¹³ And he said to me: Let thy dwelling be in Jacob, and thy inheritance in Israel, and take root in my elect.
 ¹⁴ From the beginning, and before the world, was I created, and unto the world to come I shall not cease to be, and in the holy dwelling place I have ministered before him.
 ¹⁵ And so was I established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested, and my power was in Jerusalem.
 ¹⁶ And I took root in an honourable people, and in the portion of mg God his inheritance, and my abode is in the full assembly of saints.
 ¹⁷ I was exalted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a cypress tree on mount Sion.
 ¹⁸ I was exalted like a palm tree in Cades, and as a rose plant in Jericho:
 ¹⁹ As a fair olive tree in the plains, and as a plane tree by the water in the streets, was I exalted.
 ²⁰ I gave a sweet smell like cinnamon. and aromatical balm: I yielded a sweet odour like the best myrrh:
 ²¹ And I perfumed my dwelling as storax, and galbanum, and onyx, and aloes, and as the frankincense not cut, and my odour is as the purest balm.
 ²² I have stretched out my branches as the turpentine tree, and my branches are of honour and grace.
 ²³ As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odour: and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches.
 ²⁴ I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.
 ²⁵ In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue.
 ²⁶ Come over to me, all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits.
 ²⁷ For my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb.
 ²⁸ My memory is unto everlasting generations.
 ²⁹ They that eat me, shall yet hunger: and they that drink me, shall yet thirst.
 ³⁰ He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin.
 ³¹ They that explain me shall have life everlasting.
 ³² All these things are the book of life, and the covenant of the most High, and the knowledge of truth.
 ³³ Moses commanded a law in the precepts of justices, and an inheritance to the house of Jacob, and the promises to Israel.
 ³⁴ He appointed to David his servant to raise up of him a most mighty king, and sitting on the throne of glory for ever.
 ³⁵ Who filleth up wisdom as the Phison, and as the Tigris in the days of the new fruits.
 ³⁶ Who maketh understanding to abound as the Euphrates, who multiplieth it as the Jordan in the time of harvest.
 ³⁷ Who sendeth knowledge as the light, and riseth up as Gehon in the time of the vintage.
 ³⁸ Who first hath perfect knowledge of her, and a weaker shall not search her out.
 ³⁹ For her thoughts are more vast than the sea, and her counsels more deep than the great ocean.
 ⁴⁰ I, wisdom, have poured out rivers.
 ⁴¹ I, like a brook out of a river of a mighty water; I, like a channel of a river. and like an aqueduct, came out of paradise.
 ⁴² I said: I will water my garden of plants, and I will water abundantly the fruits of my meadow.
 ⁴³ And behold my brook became a great river, and my river came near to a sea:
 ⁴⁴ For I make doctrine to shine forth to all as the morning light, and I will declare it afar off.
 ⁴⁵ I will penetrate to all the lower parts of the earth, and will behold all that sleep, and will enlighten all that hope in the Lord.
 ⁴⁶ I will yet pour out doctrine as prophecy, and will leave it to them that seek wisdom, and will not cease to instruct their offspring even to the holy age.
 ⁴⁷ See ye that I have not laboured for myself only, but for all that seek out the truth.

[EDIT:  As Nathaniel reminds me in the comments, I'd forgotten that another part of the antiphon comes from Wisdom of Solomon.   This is a beautiful passage, too, so I'll quote a bit of it here as well:

For [wisdom] is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.
Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
She is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.

She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.

Interestingly, this last passage also shows up in at least one of the mass propers  - cannot recall at the moment if more than one - at The Feast of the Transfiguration; clearly "eternal light" has something to do with that.  In any case, at some point, I'm going to take an in-depth look at the way "Wisdom" is portrayed in the Apocrypha; it's always fascinated me.  Wisdom seems to be a persona, an aspect of God given a separate form - and a feminine one, while we're at it!   Thanks again to Nathaniel for reminding me of this.]

Below is a Latin version of the Magnificat itself, if you're inclined to listen to or sing it:




The text of the Magnificat comes from Luke 1;  here are the words to the original Latin and the modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of this beautiful canticle, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

The rubrics for Sapientia-tide (these next 8 days) change, according to Breviary.net; the antiphons at Lauds and Vespers are proper to this period.  If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".

You can see the antiphons listed here, at Breviary Offices, from Lauds to Compline Inclusive (Society of St. Margaret, Boston, 1885).   Here is a direct peek-in:





This is an "O Antiphon" page from the Poissy Antiphonal (1335-45); it's got "O Sapientia," "O Adonai," and "O Radix Jesse" - the first three "O"s:

Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil

This seems to the whole thing - 45 minutes of beautiful music.  YouTube page notes below.

Serge Rachmaninoff - Vespers - All-Night Vigil.


Olga Borodina, mezzo-soprano.
Vladimir Mostowoy, tenor.
St. Petersburg Chamber Choir.
Nikolai Korniev.

The All-Night Vigil (Russian: Всенощное бдение, Vsenoshchnoe bdenie), Opus 37, is an a cappella choral composition by Sergei Rachmaninoff, written and premiered in 1915. It consists of settings of texts taken from the Russian Orthodox All-night vigil ceremony. It has been praised as Rachmaninoff's finest achievement and "the greatest musical achievement of the Russian Orthodox Church". It was one of Rachmaninoff's two favorite compositions along with The Bells, and the composer requested that one of its movements (the fifth) be sung at his funeral. The title of the work is often translated as simply Vespers, which is both literally and conceptually incorrect as applied to the entire work: only the first six of its fifteen movements set texts from the Russian Orthodox canonical hour of Vespers.

Rachmaninoff composed the All-Night Vigil in less than two weeks in January and February 1915. The first performance was given in Moscow on March 10 of that year, partly to benefit the Russian war effort. Nikolai Danilin conducted the all-male Moscow Synodal Choir at the premiere. It was received warmly by critics and audiences alike, and was so successful that it was performed five more times within a month. However the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the rise of the Soviet Union led to a ban on performances of all religious music, and on 22 July 1918 the Synodal Choir was replaced by a nonreligious "People's Choir Academy". It has been written that "no composition represents the end of an era so clearly as this liturgical work"

1. Приидите, поклонимся
Priidite, Poklonimsya
Come, Let Us Worship


2. Благослови, душе моя (греческого роспева)
Blagoslovi, Dushe Moya
Praise the Lord, O My Soul (Greek Chant)


3. Блажен муж
Blazhen Muzh
Blessed is the Man

4. Свете тихий (киевского роспева)
Svete Tikhyi
O Gentle Light (Kiev Chant)

5. Ныне отпущаеши (киевского роспева)
Nyne Otpushchayeshi
Lord, Now Lettest Thou (Nunc Dimittis) (Kiev Chant)



6. Богородице Дево, радуйся
Bogoroditsye Devo, Raduisya
Rejoice, O Virgin (Hail Mary (Ave Maria))

7. Шестопсалмие
(alternate: Slava V Vyshnikh Bogu)
The Six Psalms (alternate: Glory To God in the Highest)

8. Хвалите имя Господне (знаменного роспева)
Khvalite Imya Gospodne
Praise the Name of the Lord (Znamenny Chant)

9. Благословен еси Господи (знаменного роспева)
Blagosloven Yesi, Gospodi
Blessed Art Thou, O Lord (Znamenny Chant)



10. Воскресение Христово видевше
Voskreseniye Khristovo Videvshe
Having Beheld the Resurrection

11. Величит душа моя Господа
Velichit Dusha Moya Gospoda
My Soul Doth Magnify the Lord (Magnificat)

12. Славословие великое (знаменного роспева)
(alternate: Slava V Vyshnikh Bogu)
The Great Doxology (Znamenny Chant) (alternate: Glory to God in the Highest)

13. Тропарь: Днесь спасение (знаменного роспева)
Dnes Spaseniye Miru Byst
Troparion: Today Salvation is Come (Znamenny Chant)

14. Тропарь: Воскрес из гроба (знаменного роспева)
Voskres Iz Groba
Troparion: Thou Didst Rise from the Tomb (Znamenny Chant)

15. Взбранной Воеводе (греческого роспева)
Vzbrannoy Voyevode
O Queen Victorious (Greek Chant)

Bach: Magnificat

I'm surprised to note that I've never posted this totally wonderful series of videos of Bach's Magnificat; it's from a concert recorded live at the Kloster Melk Benedictine Monastery in Austria.  So I will do it now; the videos are arranged in a playlist so each movement will play automatically.   Don't miss it, whatever you do.

 

Here are the words to this Vespers canticle, in Latin and English:

Magnificat anima mea Dominum,
et exsultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo,
quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae.
Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes,
quia fecit mihi magna,
qui potens est,
et sanctum nomen eius,
et misericordia eius in progenies et progenies
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo,
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui;
deposuit potentes de sede
et exaltavit humiles;
esurientes implevit bonis
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum,
recordatus misericordiae,
sicut locutus est ad patres nostros,
Abraham et semini eius in saecula.

My soul doth magnify the Lord : and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath regarded : the lowliness of his handmaiden.
For behold, from henceforth : all generations shall call me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath magnified me : and holy is his Name.
And his mercy is on them that fear him : throughout all generations.
He hath shewed strength with his arm : he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He hath put down the mighty from their seat : and hath exalted the humble and meek.
He hath filled the hungry with good things : and the rich he hath sent empty away.
He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel : as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed for ever.

Here's the musician info; they are truly superlative.  (The baritone, Christopher Maltman, BTW, is a biochemist by academic training!)

Christine Schäfer, soprano
Anna Korondi, soprano
Bernarda Fink, mezzo-soprano
Ian Bostridge, tenor
Christopher Maltman, baritone

Arnold Schoenberg Choir
(chorus master: Erwin Ortner)
Concentus Musicus Wien
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, conductor

This is from the YouTube page:

Buy this DVD at: http://amzn.to/t57Xqw
Buy this in VHS format at: http://amzn.to/AaJ5if

Magnificat anima mea from Magnificat (BWV 243) by Johann Sebastian Bach. Conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt.

Christmas Day Vespers: Hodie Christus natus est / Magnificat

Here, the Schola Cantorum Riga sings the Antiphon upon Magnificat for Christmas Day Vespers, along with the Magnificat itself (and soprano sax accompaniment).

Hodie Christus natus est:
Hodie Salvator apparuit:
Hodie in terra canunt Angeli,
laetantur Archangeli
Hodie exsultant justi, dicentes:
Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Alleluia.

Magnificat anima mea Dominum,
et exsultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo,
quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae.
Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes,
quia fecit mihi magna,
qui potens est,
et sanctum nomen eius,
et misericordia eius in progenies et progenies
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo,
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui;
deposuit potentes de sede
et exaltavit humiles;
esurientes implevit bonis
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum,
recordatus misericordiae,
sicut locutus est ad patres nostros,
Abraham et semini eius in saecula.


Today Christ is born:
Today the Savior appeared:
Today on Earth the Angels sing,
Archangels rejoice:
Today the righteous rejoice, saying:
Glory to God in the highest.
Alleluia.

My soul doth magnify the Lord : and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath regarded : the lowliness of his handmaiden.
For behold, from henceforth : all generations shall call me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath magnified me : and holy is his Name.
And his mercy is on them that fear him : throughout all generations.
He hath shewed strength with his arm : he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He hath put down the mighty from their seat : and hath exalted the humble and meek.
He hath filled the hungry with good things : and the rich he hath sent empty away.
He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel : as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed for ever.

Blessed Christmas to all.

The Great "O" Antiphons (2012)

December 16 is designated "O Sapientia" in the Church Calendar of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer;  "O Sapientia" ("O Wisdom") is the Antiphon Upon Magnificat at Vespers for the 16th - and the first of 8 "Great 'O' Antiphons" for this octave before Christmas.

The texts for the Great "O"s come mostly from the Prophets and from the Wisdom literature, and become mystical  proclamations, made daily during those eight days, of the coming of Christ.  The antiphons themselves are over a thousand years old.

This year again I'm going to link to previous years' posts about them, all in this one post; you'll find chant scores and audio and/or video files - and also some discussion of each antiphon - at each of the links.  These antiphons are beautiful - I'd love to find audio versions in English of them all, because they're just as beautiful in English - and they really do make the 8 days before Christmas something truly special.  I take a few minutes out of each day in the late afternoon or evening and sing each one as it occurs in the cycle.  (If you'd like to pray the whole office of Vespers, you can do it at St. Bede's Breviary; choose "Amplified Prayer Book" under "Style" to get the "O's".)

A blessed Sapientia-tide.

• O Sapientia (December 16)
• O Adonai (December 17)
• O Radix Jesse (December 18)
• O Clavis David (December 19)
• O Oriens (December 20)
• O Rex Gentium (December 21)
• O Emmanuel (December 22)
• O Virgo Virginum (December 23)

Here, in addition, is a good longish article about these antiphons, and some other related ones - and this article contains a bit more historical information about the Great "O"s. 

Here are the Latin and modern English (US BCP 1979) versions of the Magnificat, so that you can sing along if you wish.

Magnificat: anima mea Dominum.
Et exultavit spiritus meus: in Deo salutari meo.
Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae:
ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est:
et sanctum nomen eius.
Et misericordia eius, a progenie et progenies:
timentibus eum.
Fecit potentiam in brachio suo:
dispersit superbos mente cordis sui.
Deposuit potentes de sede:
et exaltavit humiles.
Esurientes implevit bonis:
et divites dimisit inanes.
Suscepit Israel puerum suum:
recordatus misericordiae suae.
Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros:
Abraham, et semini eius in saecula.

Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto,
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Here's something interesting I hadn't seen before this year (HT Episcopal Cafe):  a 1997 NPR "All Things Considered" segment on the O Antiphons.  Here's the blurb from that page (you'll need Real Player to listen to the clip; click the "Real Media" link at top):

Linda talks with Fr. Columba Kelly, O.S.B. — a musicologist and a monk of Saint Meinrad Archabbey — about the "O Antiphons" which begin tonight at Vespers and continue through December 23rd. Each Antiphon gives an ancient title for the Messiah — and calls on the Messiah to come and help his people. These antiphons were later popularized in the Advent carol "O Come, O Come Emmanuel." The music in this segment is perfomed by members of the Washington Men's Camerata. (8:29)

And here's Zoltán Kodály's gorgeous "Veni, veni, Emmanuel," sung here by L'Accorche-Choeur, Ensemble vocal Fribourg:

Veni, Veni Emmanuel is a synthesis of the great "O Antiphons" that are used for Vespers during the octave before Christmas (Dec. 17-23). These antiphons are of ancient origin and date back to at least the ninth century.

Virgo prudentissima

Virgo prudentissima is the antiphon upon Magnificat at First Vespers of the Feast of the Assumption;  here it is, along with Magnificat, in a gorgeous recording from the choral group Vox Clamantis' new CD, "Filia Sion":



From the YouTube page:

Published on Nov 8, 2012

Antiphon: Virgo prudentissima
Magnificat

Sung by Vox Clamantis, from their CD Filia Sion (ECM).

I do not own the copyright. Please support the artists who make such beautiful music.

Please: do.   This Estonian choral group has been around since 1996 - I wasn't familiar with them till now, though! - and they are terrific.  Here's the CD page at Amazon, where you can listen to other clips; all the chants come from Marian feasts.

You can find Virgo prudentissima at Divinum Officium by typing in 08-14-2012 (or any year, in fact) at the top, and clicking, at the bottom of the page, on Vesperae; that makes it the Eve of the August 15th Feast of the Assumption, and will bring up the correct propers.

Here's the plainchant score, embedded in another recording, along with the Latin text and an English translation below:

Virgo prudentissima quo progrederis quasi aurora valde rutilans? Filia Sion tota formosa et suavis es pulchra ut luna electa ut sol.

Virgin most prudent, where are you going, rosy as the dawn? Daughter of Sion, you are altogether lovely and sweet, gorgeous as the moon, chosen as the sun.

Here's the antiphon's main listing at Cantus Database; it seems to have been used in some places more generally as "de BMV" - and at the Marian Conception (that's tomorrow, December 8) and Nativity feast days as well.

Here's a polyphonic setting of the antiphon, composed by Elzear Genet (Carpentras) (c 1470--1548); not sure who the singers are, but the YouTube page it's recorded at Staples Family Concert Hall, Central Michigan University.



Here's part of Wikipedia's entry on Genet-Carpentras:

He was born in the town of Carpentras, but nothing else is known about his early life. Sometime before 1505, he took ecclesiastical orders, since when he was hired in the Avignon chapel in that year he was called "clericus." He spent most of his life alternately in Avignon and Rome.

Evidently he was acquainted with Avignon bishop Giuliano della Rovere, for when the bishop became Pope Julius II Carpentras went with him to Rome, where he sang in the papal chapel; he was listed in a roll of the singers there in 1508. However after a few years he left the chapel to work at the court of Louis XII of France, though little is known about him at this time; clearly he was composing large quantities of secular music, some of it quite irreverent, for when he returned to Rome in 1513 he specifically promised to stop writing it. He became master of the papal chapel in 1514, now under the Medici Pope Leo X, who was an enthusiastic patron of music and the arts. When Leo X died in 1521, Carpentras fled Rome for Avignon; the new pope Adrian VI was uninterested in music, if not actively hostile, and many musicians gave him a "walking ovation."

When Adrian VI died in 1523, the new pope, Clement VII, was again a fine patron of the arts, and Carpentras returned to Rome. While there he was surprised to discover his own music still being sung but in bastardized versions; as a result he carefully copied over some of his music, such as the pictured setting of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and presented this collection to Clement VII as the "true" or "corrected" version. However, he did not stay in Rome, and after only two years he departed for Avignon, this time for good.

In 1526 he became afflicted with tinnitus, a condition which terrified him, and which he described as a continuous hissing in his head. Apparently it was at this time that he withdrew from practical music-making and instead decided to devote himself to publishing his entire output of sacred music, an immense undertaking, and the earliest recorded such attempt in music history. The publication was troublesome; one of the printers failed to align the notes to staves correctly, and the entire process ended in arbitration at one point: however eventually, in the mid 1530s, he was able to issue four large collections of his music. Two of the volumes he dedicated to Pope Clement VII, and the other two to Cardinal Ippolito de'Medici.

Heinrich Isaac wrote a long motet, one that includes lots more text (including prayers for "the sacred Empire and for Maximilian the Emperor"!), based on this antiphon.  Here's part of it at least, with the complete Latin and English texts below:

Virgo prudentissima quae pia gaudia mundo
attulit, ut sphaeras omnes transcendit et astra
sub nitidis pedibus radiis, et luce chorusca
liquit et ordinibus iam circumsepta novenis
ter tribus atque ierarchiis excepta. Supremi
ante Dei faciem steterat, patrona reorum.
Dicite qui colitis splendentia culmina Olimpi:
Spirituum proceres, Anchangeli et Angeli et alme
Virtutesque Throni vos Principum, et agmina sancta,
vosque Potestates, et tu dominatio caeli
flammantes Cherubin, verbo Seraphinque creati,
an vos laetitiae tantus perfuderit unquam
sensus, ut aeterni Matrem vidisse tonantis
consessum. Caelo, terraque, marique potentem
Reginam, cuius nomen modo spiritus omnis
et genus humanum merito veneratur adorat.

Vos, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael testamur ad aures
illius, ut castas fundetis vota precesque
pro sacro Imperio, pro Caesare Maximiliano.
Det Virgo omnipotens hostes superare malignos:
restituat populis pacem terrisque salutem.
Hoc tibi devota carmen Georgius arte
ordinat Augusti Cantor Rectorque Capellae.
Austriacae praesul regionis, sedulus omni,
se in tua commendat studio pia gaudia mater.
Praecipuum tamen est Illi quo assumpta fuisti,
quo tu pulchra ut luna micas electa es, et ut sol.

Cantus firmus:
Virgo prudentissima, quo progrederis, quasi aurora valde rutilans? Filia Sion.
Tota formosa et suavis es: pulchra ut luna, electa ut sol.


When the most wise Virgin, who brought holy joy to the world, rose above all the spheres and left the stars beneath her shining feet in gleaming, radiant light, she was surrounded by the ninefold Ranks and received by the nine Hierarchies. She, the friend of suppliants, stood before the face of the supreme God. You who inhabit eternally the dazzling lights of Heaven –– Archangels, leaders of the spirits, and Angels, and sustaining virtues, and you thrones of princes, and you holy armies and you powers, and you dominions of Heaven, and you fiery Cherubim, and you Seraphim, created from the Word – say whether such a feeling of joy has ever overwhelmed you as when you saw the assembly of the Mother of the everlasting Almighty. She is the queen, powerful in Heaven, on land and at sea; every Spirit and every human being rightly praises and adores her divine majesty.

You, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, we beg you to pour out to her chaste ears our prayers and entreaties for the sacred Empire and for Maximilian the Emperor. May the all-powerful Virgin grant that he may conquer his wicked enemies and restore peace to the nations and safety to the lands. With faithful skill Georgius, the emperor's Precentor and Kapellmeister, rehearses this anthem for you. The Governor of the Province of Austria, diligent in all things, earnestly commends himself to your holy pleasure, mother. The highest place, however, belongs to Him by whom you were taken up, so that you shine beautiful as the moon, excellent as the sun.

Cantus firmus: Virgin most wise, where are you going, Daughter of Sion, shining out as brightly as the dawn? You are most comely and merciful, beautiful as the moon, excellent as the sun.

HT - again! -  for the pointer to the Vox Clamantis video to cburrell at All Manner of Thing, who writes on his blog about this recording (one of his "Favorites of 2012"):

Vox Clamantis varies the texture by including several pieces by the likes of Hildegard von Bingen and Perotin, and the results are dazzling, in a quietly peaceful way. What sets this record apart from the scores of similarly programmed collections of chant is not the quality of the singing, exactly (though the singing is terrific) nor the technical excellence of the sound engineering (though it could not be better), but the quiet, even contemplative, spirit that presides over the whole. There is a wonderful, restful poise to this music; to hear it is like entering a haven. It is hard to say just how or why that is so; I can only say that, for me, the experience is rare, and so I regard this record as a treasure. The liner notes are worth pondering too: “The Gospels do not reveal all of Mary’s feelings to us; the mystery of the Incarnation is only briefly presented. Relying on a few phrases and returning endlessly to the sacred words and setting them in different contexts, the musical tradition shows their inexhaustible richness. Medieval compositions meditate on the mystery of the Incarnation in all its aspects. They display different shades of joy: explosive, superabundant joy which wells up like a source, as well as the shimmer of peaceful, meditative wonder before ‘the miracle never seen, the joy never known’.” To describe this music, and these performances of it, as “joy which wells up like a source” and a “shimmer of peaceful, meditative wonder” is as good and fitting a description as any. Highly recommended.

Creator Alme Siderum

Creator Alme Siderum (1st Sunday of Advent, Hymn).



This is another set of words for the original Advent hymn Conditor Alme Siderum.  Here's what TPL has to say about it:

Creator alme siderum is based upon the 7th century hymn Conditor alme siderum. In order to fit models of classical Latin poetry, Pope Urban VIII revised a number of hymns in the Roman Breviary in 1632. The hymns for Advent, in particular, were extensively revised to fit classical meters. Only one line of the original hymn made it into the revised hymn below which was formerly used at Vespers during Advent.

CREATOR alme siderum, aeterna lux credentium, Iesu, Redemptor omnium, intende votis supplicum.	BRIGHT builder of the heavenly poles, eternal light of faithful souls, Jesus, Redeemer of mankind, our humble prayers vouchsafe to mind:
Qui daemonis ne fraudibus periret orbis, impetu amoris actus, languidi, mundi medela factus es,	Who, lest the fraud of hell's black king should all men to destruction bring, didst, by an act of generous love, the fainting world's physician prove.
Commune qui mundi nefas ut expiares, ad crucem e Virginis sacrario intacta prodis victima.	Thou, that Thou mightst our ransom pay and wash the stains of sin away, didst from a Virgin's womb proceed and on the Cross a Victim bleed.
Cuius potestas gloriae, Nomenque cum primum sonat, et caelites et inferi tremente curvantur genu.	Thy glorious power, Thy saving Name no sooner any voice can frame, but heaven and earth and hell agree to honor them with trembling knee.
Te, deprecamur ultimae magnum diei Iudicem, armis supernae gratiae defende nos ab hostibus.	Thee, Christ, who at the latter day shalt be our Judge, we humbly pray such arms of heavenly grace to send as may Thy Church from foes defend.
Virtus, honor, laus, gloria Deo Patri cum Filio, Sancto simul Paraclito, in saeculorum saecula.	Be glory given and honor done to God the Father and the Son and to the Holy Ghost on high, from age to age eternally.

---

From the Roman Breviary. Tr. from the Primer (1685) and the Evening Office (1710).

Here's Conditor Alme Siderum; I'm more partial to this, but it's your call....

Conditor alme siderum
aetérna lux credéntium
Christe redémptor
ómnium exáudi preces súpplicum

Qui cóndolens intéritu
mortis perire saeculum
salvásti mundum languidum
donnas reis remedium.

Vergénte mundi véspere
uti sponsus de thálamo
egréssus honestissima
Virginis matris cláusula.

Cuius forti ponténtiae
genu curvántur ómnia
caeléstia, terréstia
nutu faténtur súbdita.

Te, Sancte fide quáesumus,
venture iudex sáeculi,
consérva nos in témpore
hostis a telo perfidi.

Sit, Christe rex piissime
tibi Patríque glória
cum Spíritu Paráclito
in sempitérna sáecula.
Amen.

Creator of the stars of night,
Thy people's everlasting light,
Jesu, Redeemer, save us all,
and hear Thy servants when they call.

Thou, grieving that the ancient curse
should doom to death a universe,
hast found the medicine, full of grace,
to save and heal a ruined race.

Thou camest, the Bridegroom of the Bride,
as drew the world to evening tide,
proceeding from a virgin shrine,
the spotless Victim all divine.

At whose dread Name, majestic now,
all knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
and things celestial Thee shall own,
and things terrestrial Lord alone.

O Thou whose coming is with dread,
to judge and doom the quick and dead,
preserve us, while we dwell below,
from every insult of the foe.

To God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Spirit, Three in One,
laud, honor, might, and glory be
from age to age eternally.
Amen.

For Vespers in Advent: Conditor Alme Siderum

Conditor alme siderum
aetérna lux credéntium
Christe redémptor
ómnium exáudi preces súpplicum

Qui cóndolens intéritu
mortis perire saeculum
salvásti mundum languidum
donnas reis remedium.

Vergénte mundi véspere
uti sponsus de thálamo
egréssus honestissima
Virginis matris cláusula.

Cuius forti ponténtiae
genu curvántur ómnia
caeléstia, terréstia
nutu faténtur súbdita.

Te, Sancte fide quáesumus,
venture iudex sáeculi,
consérva nos in témpore
hostis a telo perfidi.

Sit, Christe rex piissime
tibi Patríque glória
cum Spíritu Paráclito
in sempitérna sáecula.
Amen.

Creator of the stars of night,
Thy people's everlasting light,
Jesu, Redeemer, save us all,
and hear Thy servants when they call.

Thou, grieving that the ancient curse
should doom to death a universe,
hast found the medicine, full of grace,
to save and heal a ruined race.

Thou camest, the Bridegroom of the Bride,
as drew the world to evening tide,
proceeding from a virgin shrine,
the spotless Victim all divine.

At whose dread Name, majestic now,
all knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
and things celestial Thee shall own,
and things terrestrial Lord alone.

O Thou whose coming is with dread,
to judge and doom the quick and dead,
preserve us, while we dwell below,
from every insult of the foe.

To God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Spirit, Three in One,
laud, honor, might, and glory be
from age to age eternally.
Amen.

For the Feast of the Transfiguration: Quicumque Christum Quaeritis

The beautiful Quicumque Christum Quaeritis is the (August 6) Feast of the Transfiguration hymn for Vespers and Matins in the Roman Breviary (although not in the Sarum).

It consists of vv. 1-4, 37-40, 41-44, and 85-88 of Aurelius Prudentius' Hymnus Epiphaniae found here, along with a dozen or so others of his hymns, originally compiled and translated by Martin Pope (with thanks to Project Gutenberg).  Prudentius was a Roman Christian and poet born in the year 348.

 

Here are the words to Quicumque Christum Quaeritis, in Latin and English:

Quicumque Christum quæritis,
oculos in altum tollite:
illic licebit visere
signum perennis gloriæ.

Inlustre quiddam cernimus,
quod nesciat finem pati,
sublime, celsum, interminum,
antiquius caelo et chao.

Hic ille rex est gentium
populique rex Iudaici,
promissus Abrahae patri
eiusque in aevum semini.

Hunc et prophetis testibus
isdemque signatoribus,
testator et sator iubet
adire regnum et cernere:

Gloria Tibi, Domine
Qui natus es de virgine
Cum Patre et Samcto Spiritu,
in sempiterna sæcula.

Lift up your eyes, whoe'er ye be
That fare the new-born Christ to see:
For yonder is the shining sign
Of grace perennial and divine.

Sure 'tis the sign most reverend
Of Being that doth know no end:
Of One in state sublime arrayed
Ere sky and chaos yet were made.

This is the King of Israel,
Of all in Gentile lands that dwell:
The King to Abram and his seed
Throughout all ages erst decreed.

The prophets witnessed to the bond
Which sealed to Him the realm profound:
The Father's Kingdom He received
And the vast legacy perceived.

All glory be to you O Lord,
Son of the Virgin, the blessed Word,
With Father and Blest Spirit One
Until the ages’ course is done.
Amen.

(The doxology above is not correct, in the second line; I can't quite make out the text in the video, though.)

Pope's notes for this hymn (and for others!) are interesting; the first points out that

This poem has given four hymns to the Roman Breviary:--

(1) For the Feast of the Transfiguration, Vespers and Matins consisting of ll. 1-4, 37-40, 41-44, 85-88.
(2) For the Epiphany at Lauds, beginning O sola magnarum urbium, ll. 77-80, 5-8, 61-72.
(3) For the Feast of Holy Innocents at Matins, beginning Audit tyrannus anxius, ll. 93-100, 133-136.
(4) Also the Feast of Holy Innocents at Lauds, beginning Salvete flores martyrum, ll. 125-132.

Quicumque Christum quaeritis, says New Advent, is "the opening line of the twelfth (in honor of the Epiphany) and last poem in the 'Cathemerinon' of Prudentius." Further:

This twelfth poem or hymn contains 52 iambic dimeter strophes, and an irregular selection from its 208 lines has furnished four hymns to the Roman Breviary, all of which conclude with the usual Marian doxology ("Jesu tibi sit gloria" etc., not composed by Prudentius), slightly varied to make the doxology appropriate for the several feasts employing the hymns. The four centos are:

Quicumque Christum quaeritis (Matins and first and second Vespers of the feast of the Transfiguration), comprising sixteen lines (I-4, 37-44, 85-88) and the doxology (which changes its second line): Jesu, tibi sit gloria, Qui to revelers parvulis, etc.

Although written for the Epiphany, the lines forming the cento apply well to the Transfiguration, as Daniel notes (Thes. Hymnol., I, p. 136).

The Transfiguration is celebrated twice each liturgical year:  on August 6, its own feast day, and also on the Last Sunday after The Epiphany, when it's the subject of the Lectionary reading. The story appears in each of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke); for this past year, Year B, the telling of the tale at the last Sunday after Epiphany is from Mark:

Mark 9:2-9

9:2 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,

9:3 and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them.

9:4 And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

9:5 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

9:6 He did not know what to say, for they were terrified.

9:7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!"

9:8 Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.

9:9 As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

On the August 6 Feast of the Transfiguration, the Gospel reading is from Luke:

Luke 9:28-36

About eight days after Jesus had foretold his death and resurrection, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"--not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

The Old Testament reading for today is the story of Moses on Mt. Sinai, and of his experience of "close encounter" with God:

Exodus 34:29-35

Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; but whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

The Collect for the Feast of the Transfiguration is:

O God, who on the holy mount revealed to chosen witnesses your well-beloved Son, wonderfully transfigured, in raiment white and glistening: Mercifully grant that we, being delivered from the disquietude of this world, may by faith behold the King in his beauty; who with you, O Father, and you, O Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

. about which Hatchett's Commentary says:

This is a slightly revised version of the collect the Rev. Dr. William Reed Huntington wrote for the day, based on the Lukan story of the transfiguration.  It was first included in the 1892 Prayer Book.

Here's the full Transfiguration entry from the wonderful Full Homely Divinity:

The Feast of the Transfiguration is of great antiquity, though it was not established as a feast of universal observance in the West until 1457 in the pontificate of Callistus III. It is, perhaps, for this reason, that there are few special customs associated with the feast. The feast always seems to have been observed on August 6th in the East. It is likely that this is the date of the fourth century dedication of a church on Mount Tabor, the traditional site of the biblical event. However, the earliest Western liturgical reference to the feast is found in the fifth century, when Matthew's account of the Transfiguration was the Gospel for the Ember Saturday in Lent. To make a long story short, it was the 15th century before English Benedictines were keeping it as a major feast in its own right on August 6th and it finally made its way into the Sarum Kalendar. Even so, it had not caught on too strongly since, in spite of its clear biblical warrant, it was dropped in 1549. It appears in some subsequent Prayer Book Kalendars, but without a proper collect and readings. Its full restoration in the American revision of The Book of Common Prayer in 1892 may be attributed to the influence William Reed Huntington. In addition to its celebration on August 6th, the Transfiguration is also commemorated on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday in some recent Prayer Books, such as the 1979.

The feast commemorates a truly startling event, shortly before Jesus went up to Jerusalem to enter into his Passion. Going up to the top of a mountain with Jesus, the inner circle of the disciples, Peter, James, and John, are overwhelmed with a brilliant and unearthly manifestation of their Lord in glory as he converses with Moses and Elijah about the things that are to come. For a moment, the humanity of Jesus is infused with light and it is as if his divinity has become palpable. In fact, the disciples are dumbfounded,  and can barely find words with which to respond. Although they have been with Jesus constantly for three years, they still do not really understand who he is, but a voice from heaven removes any uncertainty when it proclaims, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!"

Orthodox Christians have focused on the light that was manifest on this occasion. The thirteenth century Archbishop of Thessalonica, St. Gregory Palamas, taught that the light which infused this scene was not natural, created, or material light, but was the uncreated light of God who is unapproachable in his Essence, but who can be perceived by his energies. St. Gregory taught that the light of Tabor was a particular manifestation of those energies which are also sometimes perceived by those who are deeply immersed in a particular method of prayer known as hesychastic prayer. Hesychastic prayer has evoked some interest among Western Christians in recent years as a result of interest in the Jesus Prayer ("Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner"), which is at the heart of hesychast ascetical practice. The Russian spiritual classic, The Way of the Pilgrim, has popularized the Jesus Prayer among many Western Christians who seek new ways of entering more deeply into the spiritual life.

This extraordinary approach to the light of Tabor is one way of understanding the Transfiguration, but it is dependent on a theology with which most Westerners are not particularly at home. Dr. Marianne Dorman, an Anglican educator offers this meditation on the light of Tabor. Noting that the Orthodox do indeed seem to take this feast more seriously than the Western Church does, she draws on Orthodox liturgical texts and goes on to explore other aspects of this event which can both trouble and transform us in deep and powerful ways. For in the Transfiguration we are taken back in time to creation when God was the only Light, as well as forward to the City of the Lamb where, once again, God is the only Light. The Transfiguration reveals in an unmistakable way the "true light that enlightens everyone coming into the world" (John 1:9) and also foreshows the light of the Resurrection, by which all believers are raised to the light and life of the Kingdom in the Day when he shall come again in glory. Occurring as it does on the way to Jerusalem, the Transfiguration centers all of this in the Cross when even death itself is unable to quench the Light. In short, we may say that the Transfiguration is the Gospel in sum: manifesting the glory and power of God as he renews the whole creation and redeems his people from darkness and sin.

William Reed Huntington was one of the giants of the 19th century Episcopal Church. A leader and a reconciler in critical times, rector of Grace Church, New York City, and a member of the House of Deputies of the General Convention for 36 years, he was known, unofficially of course, as "first presbyter of the Church." Summers usually found Dr. Huntington on Mount Desert Island, Maine, where he was active in the church of St. Mary-by-the-Sea, which had been founded by William Croswell Doane, the Bishop of Albany, who also summered there. It was Dr. Huntington who proposed to revise the Prayer Book and he contributed two collects: the Collect for Monday in Holy Week, and the Collect for the Feast of the Transfiguration. That feast was first observed at St. Mary's in 1887 and it was while climbing nearby Sargent Mountain that he found the inspiration for the Collect, which originally read:

O God, who on the mount didst reveal to chosen witnesses thine only-begotten Son wonderfully transfigured, in raiment white and glistering; Mercifully grant that we, being delivered from the disquietude of this world, may be permitted to behold the King in his beauty, who with thee, O Father, and thee, O Holy Ghost, liveth and reigneth, one God, world without end. Amen.

Like Jesus, Dr. Huntington sought out a lonely mountaintop for prayer. It can hardly be imagined that Peter and James and John found the experience anything but disquieting, and Jesus himself, speaking with Moses and Elijah about the trials to come, must also have had some ambivalence about the experience. Nevertheless, it is through such a transforming experience that we are at last permitted to see the vision glorious--the uncreated Light of Tabor which is the King himself in all his beauty. In view of this, time apart, on a mountaintop if possible, but wherever we may withdraw for undisturbed prayer and meditation, is surely the most suitable way of extending this feast beyond the Liturgy into our personal and family festal observances.

Just as Lammas Day marks the beginning of the wheat harvest with a special blessing of bread, the Transfiguration has traditionally marked the beginning of the harvest of fruit, particularly the fruit of the vine. The transformation which takes place as fruit develops from the bud, to flower, to ripened fruit is a natural transfiguration. The symbolism here is even more pointed with grapes which continue to be transformed from fruit, to juice, to wine, and then, sacramentally, to the Blood of Christ received in the Eucharist. In the East, it is customary to bless a variety of fruits at the conclusion of the Liturgy on the Feast of the Transfiguration. In the West, however, only grapes are blessed and it was the custom, at one time, for a handful of grapes to be squeezed directly into the Chalice, mingling the fresh juice with the already consecrated Wine of the Eucharist. Here is a blessing that may be used to bless grapes for distribution at the conclusion of the Eucharist.

Blessing of Grapes on Transfiguration

Bless, O Father, this new fruit of the vine, which has grown and ripened through good weather, warm sunshine, and drops of rain and dew: may it bring refreshment and joy to us who partake of it. As the buds of the vine have been transformed into ripe and delicious fruit, and as the juice of the fruit is transformed by thy grace into the pure Blood of Christ, so may we be transformed into the mature likeness of him who shed his Blood for us and quenches our thirst with the Cup of Salvation, the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

While Full Homely Divinity is not a political website, it would be unthinkable to omit mention of the fact that on August 6th, 1945, the first nuclear bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. However one chooses to characterize the reasons for that act, it is unarguable that the world was transformed for ever by its blinding light. As we reflect on the meaning of the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ, surely this is a day when, each year, we must give thought to the stark contrast between those two transforming events, between the power that is now in our hands and the ways in which we use it, and the power that belongs to God alone and the ways in which he uses it.

Yes, exactly:  "As we reflect on the meaning of the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ, surely this is a day when, each year, we must give thought to the stark contrast between those two transforming events, between the power that is now in our hands and the ways in which we use it, and the power that belongs to God alone and the ways in which he uses it."

This icon of the Transfiguration is "an early-15th century icon from the Tretyakov Gallery, attributed to Theophanes the Greek":

This one is a "Trasfiguration-fresco, in St. George Church in Kurbinovo, Macedonia," and is from, the page says, the 12th C.:

I'd wanted to include something from the 20th Century here; you'd think that the Transfiguration would have been an almost irresistable subject for some of the artists in the past century. Couldn't find anything, though - so I include this Duccio di Buoninsegna rendering from "between 1250 and 1260":

Love the Ducc, anyway. And there's also this beautiful "Gothic altarpiece of Transfiguration, by Bernat Martorell, at Cathedral of Barcelona," from 1445 or so:

You should go have a look in detail at that last one, I think.

I'm hoping for another post, shortly, about another aspect of the Feast of the Transfiguration: its association, especially in the chant propers, with Wisdom.

There will be more to come, too, about Prudentius' poems.