My friend, Joe Summerville (Pastor at University Lutheran Church, Norman, OK), often helps me remember and observe the richness of our Christian heritage through the seasons of the church year and the liturgy. When we were texting recently, he reminded me of the “O Antiphons”. I’ve also been receiving email each day from a publishing company about them. So, I thought I’d learn more about them.
An “antiphon” is a verse from Scripture that is either sung or read. The “O Antiphons” come from the Roman Catholic tradition and are part of the evening worship service (vespers) from December 17 – December 23. They are called “O” antiphons because they are names or attributes of Jesus from the Bible that each begin with the exclamation “O” – O Emmanuel, O Wisdom, etc.
I’ve included the dates, the Latin and English translation, and a YouTube link for each so you can hear the chanting and read the translations. If you would like to read more about the O Antiphons, Wikipedia has some good information here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Antiphons.
December 17: O Sapientia (O Wisdom) – YouTube
December 18: O Adonai (O Lord) – YouTube
December 19: O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse) – YouTube
December 20: O Clavis David (O Key of David) – YouTube
December 21: O Oriens (O Dayspring) – YouTube
December 22: O Rex Gentium (O King of the nations) – YouTube
December 23: O Emmanuel (O With Us is God) – YouTube
Epicurious Lutheran 