O KEY OF DAVID, scepter of the house of Israel; you open and no one closes, you close and no one opens: Come and deliver us from the chains of prison – we who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.
Meditation: This couldn’t be more apt – living, as we are, in a new lock-down. Will we inwardly shut down, or will we be in anticipation of the new life coming soon into our world, the scepter of the house of Israel. This December, we, and creation, are in hibernation. But we wait in hope.
Active reflection: Listen to the rhythm of Creation. Take this quiet time to inwardly reflect on your place in creation, the gifts from it you have received, and what can you do now to give back. Visit The Episcopal Church Creation Care website (ECUSA Creation Care), Covenant to Care of Creation, and choose one practice to live into this Advent.
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O RISING DAWN, Brightness of the light eternal, sun of righteousness: Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death
You may want to use this as a daily prayer this week.
A PRAYER OF PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING
How glorious you bare in the triumph of the season. Every creature awakes to new life and joyfully sings your praises with a thousand tongues: you are the source of life, the conqueror of death. By the light of the moon nightingales sing: the plains and the woods put on their wedding garments, white as snow. Glory to you for bringing from the darkness of the earth an endless variety of colors, tastes, and scents. Glory to you for the warmth and tenderness of the world of nature. Glory to you for surrounding us with tens of thousands of your works. Glory to you for the depth of your wisdom: the whole world is a living sign of it. Glory to you; on our knees we kiss the traces of your unseen hand.
Glory to you for setting before is the dazzling light of your eternal beauty. Glory to you for the hope of the imperishable splendor of immortality. Glory to you O Holy God, from age to age. Amen (from God’s Good Earth by Anne and Jeffrey Rowthorn)
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The Simpler Living committee has curated a collection of O Antiphons taken from St Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, Seattle’s 2019 advent for our season. Each Thursday we will include our own meditation/reflections related to creation care. You can follow along each Thursday.
