O Emmanuel

"The Great antiphon for 23 December sung by the Dominican student brothers in Oxford."

Blessed John Paul II

Today the Church remembers Blessed Pope John Paul II on her calendar for the first time.

Here is the Second Reading for today's Office of Readings: today's reading. It is taken from Blessed John Paul's Inaugural Homily.

(A couple of links via Whispers in the Loggia.)

From Psalm 119

Today at Midday Prayer (Sext) the last phrase here grabbed me for some reason.

"Be kind to your servant that I may live, that I may keep your word.
Open my eyes to see clearly the wonders of your teachings.
I am a sojourner in the land ......."

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/psalms/psalm119.htm

De Profundis

In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church , Psalm 129(130) is traditionally used as a prayer for the dead. It is used in the Office of the Dead , which is a set of prayers said or sung for the deceased that are part of the Liturgy of the Hours , a large set or cycle of psalms and prayers which are said or sung every day throughout the year. In modern bibles it appears as Psalm 130 but its traditional number in Catholic worship is 129, as it appears in the Vulgate, the Latin translation of the Bible. Psalm 129(130) is traditionally called by its first words in Latin, the "De Profundis".

In the Liturgy of the Hours it's also used at other times. For instance, it's currently used on Wednesdays for Compline, or Night Prayer. It is also one of the Penetential Psalms , psalms used traditionally to express remorse and pray for forgiveness.

1 Out of the depths I have cried to you, O Lord:

2 Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.

3 If you, O Lord, will mark iniquities: Lord, who shall stand it.

4 For with you there is merciful forgiveness: and by reason of your law,
I have waited for you, O Lord. My soul has relied on his word:

5 My soul has hoped in the Lord.

6 From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.

7 Because with the Lord there is mercy: and with him plentiful redemption.

8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities

The composer Josquin des Prez set the psalm to music. His setting can be heard performed by the Hilliard Ensemble here:

Josquin: De Profundis Clamavi

Traditional date of the Epiphany

Today, January 6, is the traditional date for the Feast of the Epiphany. In Spain and Latin America today, not Christmas Day, is the traditional date for exchanging gifts and it is the Three Wise Men who bring the children their gifts.

All about Epiphany from Churchyear.net.

Because it is still the Christmas season(!)
All about Christmas, also from the Churchyear site.

History of the feast:Epiphany,
from the old Catholic Encyclopedia.

Todays's Office of Readings: Office of Readings for the the Feast of the Epiphany , from Universalis.

From today's Liturgy of the Hours,

At Lauds (Morning Prayer), the antiphon for the Canticle of Zechariah:

"Today the Bridegroom claims his bride, the Church, since Christ has washed her sins away in Jordan's waters; the Magi hasten with thir gifts to the royal wedding; and the wedding guests rejoice, for Christ has changed water into wine, alleluia."

At Second Vespers (Evening Prayer II), the antiphon for the Magnificat, or Canticle of Mary:

"Three Mysteries mark this holy day: today the star leads the Magi to the infant Christ; today water is changed into wine for the wedding feast; today Christ wills to be baptized by John in the river Jordan to bring us salvation."

Song of Songs

I (attempt to) follow the 2-year cycle of scriptural passages for the Office of Readings. Unless I missed something the Universalis site (link at the right) only uses the 1-year cycle apparently . I use a different translation for the Liturgy of the Hours but a table of readings for the 2-year cycle can be found at the back of Christian Prayer. One thing that fascinates me is that the readings for much of Christmas in year 2 of the cycle are from the Song of Songs. Todays reading (Sg 1:1-10):

Let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth: for thy breasts are better than wine, Smelling sweet of the best ointments. Thy name is as oil poured out: therefore young maidens have loved thee. Draw me: we will run after thee to the odour of thy ointments. The king hath brought me into his storerooms: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, remembering thy breasts more than wine: the righteous love thee. I am black but beautiful, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Cedar, as the curtains of Solomon. Do not consider me that I am brown, because the sun hath altered my colour: the sons of my mother have fought against me, they have made me the keeper in the vineyards: my vineyard I have not kept.

Shew me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou liest in the midday, lest I begin to wander after the flocks of thy companions. If thou know not thyself, O fairest among women, go forth, and follow after the steps of the flocks, and feed thy kids beside the tents of the shepherds. To my company of horsemen, in Pharao's chariots, have I likened thee, O my love. Thy cheeks are beautiful as the turtledove's, thy neck as jewels. We will make thee chains of gold, inlaid with silver.


(technically the table in "Christian Prayer" only lists verses 1 to 8 but the edition I follow prints verses 1 to 10). There's something very beautiful about reading the Song of Songs at Christmastime!

The translation above is from the Douay-Rheims edition of the Bible.