Questions for meditation
How does Jesus embody obedience and worship of God as a daily, living practice of discipleship and transformation?
Where do you hear references to the Magnificat in the Antiphon or its scriptural sources?
Antiphon for December 23
O GOD-WITH-US, Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people, Come and set us free, Lord our God.
Then pray the Magnificat:
And Mary said,
My soul overflows with your greatness, O Adonai;
My spirit rejoices in you, O Savior of All the Nations!
For the light of your countenance has dawned over me
despite my humble state.
From now and throughout eternity
even those yet born will call me Blessed
and sing of the great things you have done for me,
exulting in the holiness of your Name.
You pour out your mercy on those who stand in awe of you,
those who revere you,
from ages untold to ages yet to come.
Your strong arm shields the humble
and levels the proud in their isolating conceit.
You have razed the thrones of those who rule by might
while setting the lowly and gentle upon seats of honor.
You have satisfied the hungry with abundant delights
while giving the rich a begging bowl,
sending them away empty-handed.
You have come to the aid of your people unfailingly
fulfilling your promises to our ancestors,
to the children of Hagar, Sarah, and Abraham forever,
standing among us from time immemorial.
Repeat the antiphon
O GOD-WITH-US, Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people, Come and set us free, Lord our God.
Prayer references for the antiphon:
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel .
Matthew 1:22-23
So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us”