Blessed is the Kingdom

Seeking The Kingdom In All Things

O Rising Sun!

O Rising Sun,
splendour of light eternal and sun of righteousness:
Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.

Today’s antiphon is one of my favorites during this time of Advent preparation as it reminds us that even before Christ’s birth, the joy of his resurrection was present to those whom Isaiah describes with these words,
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shown. (Isaiah 9:1)
As we continue towards the end of our Advent journey it is important to remember that no matter how far we slip into the darkness of sin and death, that  a savior has been born unto us who will scatter the darkness once and for all.

I am always reminded that sunlight serves many purposes in our world. Without it, there can be no life. We know that plants need the sun in order to live. We know also that those things that have died need the sun’s light in order to decay. Light both brings forth life and destroys those things that are dead. Christ’s light does the same. It brings forth new life for each person who receives his light, yet it also destroys those things in each of us that would otherwise bring death to the sinner. Today we rejoice in the light of Christ that shines forth during what Fr. Alexander Schmemann once called this the Winter Pascha as we not only celebrate his birth, but also his resurrection.

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This entry was posted by on Monday, December 21st, 2009 at 3:47 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

About The Author

Fr. Christian is the pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Lenoir City, TN.

Comments

  • http://annebender.blogspot.com anne

    Considering that this is the longest day of the year, this antiphon is especially touching. How I long for the Son rise!

  • Tory

    I love that version of “O Come Emmanuel” who sings that first one?
    Great way to decompress today.

  • Fr. Christian Mathis

    I think it’s Enya

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