Come, Radiant Dawn, splendour of eternal light, sun of justice: shine on those lost in the darkness of death!   Light, Liturgy and Time “The celebration of the birth of Christ [is] the dawning of the new light, the true sun, of history.” Pope Benedict XVI, The Spirit of the Liturgy, p. 107. Today’s antiphon ...read more

Come, Key of David, opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom: free the prisoners of darkness! Jesus is the key of David, setting prisoners free. I am reminded of Luke 23:42-43, when the good thief said to Jesus, “remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus replied to him, “Amen, I say to ...read more

But it's hard to escape the baggage of Christmas. It’s usually about this time that I start thinking about all the people who get lonely at Christmas. It’s true. This holiday reminds us of family, of our childhood and many people don’t have that, or have issues to reconcile or a past that they would rather not remember. Secular Christmas brings all that to the forefront. ...read more

Come, Flower of Jesse’s stem, sign of God’s love for all his people: save us without delay! When I think of this antiphon I can’t help but think of Mary. In fact, I would consider that this O Antiphon, O Radix Jesse, is inseparable from Mary. But O Radix Jesse, Root of Jesse, is a ...read more

Come, Leader of ancient Israel, giver of the Law to Moses on Sinai: rescue us with your mighty power! “Adonai” means “my Lord,” and is an ancient title of God. The Antiphon prayer reflects on God who spoke to Moses by the burning bush and gave him the Ten Commandments. A few months ago, I ...read more

Come, Wisdom of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love: teach us to walk in the path of knowledge! How do we know what’s right? How do we know what’s real? Or true? Philosophers, theologians, scientists and everyone else under the sun have asked those questions since humans became capable of asking ...read more

  Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? Someone who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up their soul to what is false. Isaiah 7:10-14 Psalm 24 Romans 1.1-7 Matthew 1:18-24 We often say that the road to hell is paved ...read more

As we draw near to the coming of Our Lord over the next few days, we’ll be unveiling a series of images and blog posts with Latin titles. The series reflects on the set of “O Antiphons,” ancient prayers for the final phase of the Advent season. December 17: O Sapientia, “Wisdom” December 18: O Adonai, “Lord ...read more

On Monday, December 12, Pope Francis celebrated Mass and gave a homily on the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Guadalupe. Pope Francis spoke about celebrating Guadalupe at a difficult time for humanity. Read the full text of his homily below:   Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis Holy Mass Blessed Virgin Mary of ...read more

  Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God. He will come and save you.” Isaiah 35:1-10 James 5:7-10 Matthew 11:2-11 “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? What did you ...read more