The Great O antiphon for December 17 is “O Wisdom.”
(See an explanation of the Great O’s in the blog post for December 16.)
From Ecclesiasticus 24: 3 – 9
I came forth from the mouth of the Most High,
and covered the earth like a mist.
I dwelt in the highest heavens,
and my throne was in a pillar of cloud.
Alone I compassed the vault of heaven
and traversed the depths of the abyss.
Over waves of the sea, over all the earth,
and over every people and nation I have held sway.
Among all these I sought a resting-place;
in whose territory should I abide?
Then the Creator of all things gave me a command,
and my Creator chose the place for my tent.
He said, “Make your dwelling in Jacob,
and in Israel receive your inheritance.”
Before the ages, in the beginning, he created me,
and for all the ages I shall not cease to be.
WISDOM is the Mother, gently awakening the child — each one of us — from a natural sleep. It is a sleep to which we lent ourselves willingly in weariness at the end of yesterday, and now, strengthened and restored, we are ready to be awakened. Mother Wisdom gently speaks to us so that we may open our eyes to the dawn, to the light and energies of a new world. Mother Wisdom’s voice is gentle and loving and she summons us to hope and long for truth, justice and peace. And still there is about Wisdom a definite strength and masculine quality that exists within us to push that life out into our world. Wisdom is called “a breath of the power of God,” “a reflection of eternal light — a mirror of the working of God” (Wisdom 7). This tender and strong love — the compassion of our God who so loves the world — tenderly bends over it, encompasses, surrounds and enfolds it. Yes, O Wisdom, come and teach us how to live. (Sr. Doreen McGuff)
From “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”:
O come, O Wisdom from on high
Who orders all things mightily,
to us the path of knowledge show
and teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to you, O Israel.
