Fifth O Antiphon: O Oriens Splendor
The O Oriens Splendor is the fifth Antiphon of the O Antiphons, prayed on December 21st of Advent.
The meditation portion is not part of the O Antiphons, but is found in Dom Guerenger’s The Liturgical here. It is simply included here for your spiritual enrichment.
Fifth O Antiphon: O Oriens Splendor
O Orient Splendor of eternal light, and Sun of justice! come and enlighten them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.
Translation: O Oriens, splendor lucis æternæ, et sol justitiæ; veni et illumina sedentesin tenebris, et umbra mortis.
Pray the O Antiphon & the Magnificat
The Magnificat
| Antiphon: O Orient Splendor of eternal light, and Sun of justice! come and enlighten them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death. Magníficat ánima mea Dóminum. Et exultávit spíritus meus: in Deo salutári meo. Quia respéxit humilitátem ancíllae suae: Ecce enim ex hoc beátam me dicent omnes generatiónes. Quia fécit mihi mágna qui pótens est: et sánctum nómen eius. Et misericórdia eius in progénies et progénies timéntibus eum. Fécit poténtiam in bráchio suo: dispérsit supérbos mente cordis sui. Depósuit poténtes de sede: et exaltávit húmiles. Esuriéntes implévit bonis: et dívites dimísit inánes. Suscépit Ísrael púerum suum: recordátus misericórdiae suae. Sicut locútus est ad patres nostros: Ábraham, et sémini eius in saecula. Glória Patri, et Fílio, et Spirítui Sancto, Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen. Repeat Antiphon | Antiphon: O Oriens, splendor lucis æternæ, et sol justitiæ; veni et illumina sedentesin tenebris, et umbra mortis. My soul doth magnify the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. Because He hath regarded the humility of His slave: For behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. Because He that is mighty hath done great things to me; and holy is His name. And His mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear Him. He hath shewed might in His arm: He hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away. He hath received Israel His servant, being mindful of His mercy: As He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever. Glory be the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forever and ever, Amen. Repeat Antiphon |
Meditation
O Jesus, divine Sun! Thou art coming to snatch us from eternal night: blessed forever be Thy infinite goodness! But Thou puts our faith to the test, before showing Thyself in all Thy brightness. Thou hides Thy rays, until the time decreed by Thy heavenly Father comes, in which all Thy beauty will break upon the world. Thou art traversing Judea; Thou art near Jerusalem; the journey of Mary and Joseph nears its end. Crowds of men pass or meet Thee on the road, each one hurrying to his native town, there to be enrolled, as the edict commands. Not one of all these suspects that Thou, O divine One are so near. They see Thy Mother Mary, and they see nothing in her above the rest of women. Or if they are impressed by the majesty and incomparable modesty of this august Queen, it is but a vague feeling of surprise at there being such dignity in one so poor as she is; and they soon forget her again. If the Mother is thus an object of indifference to them, it is not to be expected that they will give even so much as a thought to her Child, that is not yet born.
And yet this Child is Thyself, O Sun of justice! Oh! Increase our faith, but increase, too, our love. If these men loved Thee, O Redeemer of mankind, Thou would give them the grace to feel Thy presence. Their eyes, indeed, would not yet see Thee, but their hearts, at least, would burn within them, they would long for Thy coming, and would hasten it by their prayers and sighs. Dearest Jesus! who thus traverses the world Thou has created, and who forces not the homage of Thy creatures, we wish to keep near Thee during the rest of this Thy journey. We kiss the footsteps of her that carries Thee in her womb. We will not leave Thee, until we arrive together with Thee at Bethlehem, that house of bread, where, at last, our eyes will see Thee, O splendor of eternal light, our Lord and our God!world Thou has enriched by Thy grace, and the creatures whom Thou has made to be Thine own brethren.
From The Liturgical Year, by Dom Guerenger.
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