The O Antiphons and the Stammheim Missal
In September I co-authored a piece with
on the glorious Michaelmas miniature from the Stammheim Missal. The last days of Advent, called “the Golden Days” by the Medieval monks seem a fitting time to return to this eleventh century masterpiece, which was made by craftsmen in the Scriptorium of the Benedictine Abbey at Hildesheim. Both the O Antiphons and the Stammheim Missal begin with a meditation on Wisdom and Christ’s presence at the beginning of all things, though the illuminations were not specifically made for the O Antiphons. The missal is full of visual wonders and rich typological meditation. It is an apt work of art to assist us in praying the O Antiphons, those ancient Advent prayers which direct us to see Christ as the center of all Salvation history.It’s not surprising that the O Antiphons should share a thematic emphasis with illuminations designed for a missal, the book of readings and prayers for the mass. The O Antiphons are a summary of themes that appear repeatedly in the readings and prayers of the liturgical year. In these antiphons, we look back to see Christ in the Old Testament and forward to his return. Like the letter O, they circle around the Nativity, drawing us closer and closer to this central event, deepening our appreciation and longing for his coming.
These ancient prayers help us to heighten our anticipation and renew our focus on Christ, orienting our hearts, our desires, and our longings. By turning our attention each day onto a specific name for Christ, we come to know better who it is that comes to us on Christmas and why we need him. The O Antiphons are recited during Vespers before and after the Magnificat, Mary’s song of praise, because, as Dom Gueranger writes they “show us that the Saviour whom we expect is to come to us by Mary.”
O Sapientia—December 17
O Wisdom that comest out of the mouth of the Most High, that reachest from one end to another, and orderest all things mightily and sweetly, come to teach us the way of prudence!1
She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well (Wis. 8:1)
I (Wisdom) was with him forming all things (Proverbs 8:30)2
Both of these miniatures, which introduce the Stammheim Missal, illustrate Christ’s role in the ordering of Creation. In the image on the left, the illuminator has painted a beautifully ordered diagram of the six days of creation, which highlight the rich symbolism, harmony and order within the cosmos and in its telling in the book of Genesis. Each medallion of creation is placed across from the creature God appointed to rule it, with man in the center. At the top of the image, Christ rules all of creation with outstretched arms, flanked by two seraphim.
The illumination and the antiphon invite us to ponder Christ’s role in creation as the Word, the one who orders all things. He is the divine Wisdom that infuses all things with purpose. In the image on the right, the illuminator reminds us that Christ comes to restore the order in creation from the division that is illustrated in the corners of the prior page in the expulsion and the slaying of Able. A personification of Wisdom holds up Christ who delivers prophecies of his coming to Abraham and David.
The images on both pages perhaps illustrate the verse from Proverbs:
When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master workman; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the sons of men. (Prov. 8:27-31)
In the second image, Wisdom lifts the medallion holding Christ with an upright posture which reflects her perfect support. The surrounding characters eagerly receive the message handed to them by Christ and model the anticipation which we strive to imitate as we prepare for both Christmas and the Second Coming of Christ.
As Christ governs creation with perfect prudence, the antiphon calls us to imitate this prudence in the way we govern our lives so to prepare for Christ’s coming.
O Adonai—December 18
O Adonai, and Ruler of the house of Israel, Who didst appear unto Moses in the burning bush, and gavest him the law in Sinai, come to redeem us with an outstretched arm!3
“Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There an angel of the Lord appeared to him in fire flaming out of a bush. As he looked on, he was surprised to see that the bush, though on fire, was not consumed. So Moses decided, "I must go over to look at this remarkable sight, and see why the bush is not burned." (Exodus 3:1 - 5)
While the first antiphon tells of the way Christ reveals himself in creation, this antiphon reminds us that Christ also revealed himself in history. By presenting Christ and the burning bush together in an illumination of the Nativity, the Stammheim artist has made explicit what the antiphon suggests—that it was Christ who appeared to Moses in the burning bush and that Christ’s coming into his creation in the burning bush anticipates his coming into the flesh. Both the burning bush and Mary’s divine motherhood present the mystery of this union between God and his creation. As Saint Gregory of Nyssa further explains:
Lest one think that the radiance did not come from a material substance, this light did not shine from some luminary among the stars but came from an earthly bush and surpassed the heavenly luminaries in brilliance.
This complex miniature also illuminates “the house of Israel” from the antiphon which is depicted in the architectural framing as well as the person of Mary. The door represents her virginity and her womb the house that Christ came to rest in. The same Christ who was born of Mary rules over the house of Israel and the Church.
Not only this, but as the inscription held by Ezekiel reminds us, the door also refers to the door of the temple which can only be opened by God: "This gate will be closed" (Ezekiel 44:2) The incarnation opens the way by which Christ achieved our salvation. Through Christ, the doors of the house of Israel, of the Heavenly Jerusalem, will be opened.
O Radix Jesse—December 19
O Root of Jesse, which standest for an ensign of the people, at Whom the kings shall shut their mouths, Whom the Gentiles shall seek, come to deliver us, do not tarry.4
A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord. Not by appearance shall he judge, nor by hearsay shall he decide, and decide aright for the land's afflicted. (Isaiah 11:1-4)
In this miniature the illuminator has infused the flowering branch from Isaiah with a vigorous strength. It does not merely grow but shoots forth radiating to the ends of the page, spiraling forward and curling in because the shoots cannot be contained by the mere fragile page. This artistic rendering of the verse reminds us of how Christ gives life and strength to creation, directing it towards its end which is in him. In this illumination we are given a sense of the fecundity of the vine we are grafted onto through the Church. We see how Christ weaves himself into the very human fabric of his creation, becoming the blossom and end of a particular family, and, in doing so, the end for every human family.
O Clavis David—December 20
O Key of David, and Sceptre of the house of Israel, that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth, come to liberate the prisoner from the prison, and them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.5
“To the presiding spirit of the church in Philadelphia, write this: "The Holy One, the true, who wields David's key, who opens and no one can close, who closes and no one can open, has this to say: "I know your deeds; that is why I have left an open door before you which no one can close. I know that your strength is limited; yet you have held fast to my word and have not denied my name."(Revelation 3:7-8)
David reappears in this antiphon and directs our attention toward the theme of opening and shutting which runs throughout the Bible and the illuminations of the Stammheim missal. The antiphon alludes to these words from the Annunciation:
And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.
The antiphon also directs us back to the Old Testament as well as forward to Revelation, for Christ is the key that opens the Heavenly Jerusalem. In the miniature, the inscription David holds says "Glorious things are said of you, city of God" (Psalm 86 :3)
This antiphon and illumination revisit the theme of “the house of Israel” and the seven columns of the house in the illumination and the inscription held by King Solomon at the bottom of the miniature return to the theme of Christ as Wisdom: “Wisdom built her house; she hewed out seven columns" (Proverbs 9:1)
Like a musical composition, these antiphons revisit certain themes layering them with a richness and drawing connections between disparate images. The prominent architectural schema of the Stammheim brings out this theme of “the house of Israel” which runs through the antiphons, reminding us that what we had been shut out of because of sin, Christ reopens and prepares for us.
O Oriens—December 21
O Dayspring, Brightness of the everlasting light, Sun of justice, come to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death6
"Jesus whom you seek is not here but risen" (cf. Mark 16:6).
In an article for the New Liturgical Movement, Gregory DiPippo points out that the O Antiphons not only point to the Old Testament and the coming of Christ but also draw us more deeply into the events of the life of Christ. The antiphon for December 21st, “O Oriens” literally translates to the “rising one” which invites us to meditate on the Resurrection, the event in which Christ makes a path for us out of death and the darkness of the grave. In this image Christ rises out of some cosmic disc of darkness as he delivers and receives a message from his Father. The hand of God with the words "Arise, my glory," (Psalm 56) greet him. Christ responds with the last words of the same psalm: " I will arise early." The images on the corners of the page, arranged around the central cross of figures, are all Old Testament types of Christ’s rising and his victory over death and darkness.
The abundance of gold on this page gives it a luminous glow which reminds us that Christ is the “everlasting light” that will shine on all things. And yet this time has not yet come, as the darkness of winter reminds us. As Gregory the Great wrote in his reflections on the book of Job:
Dawn, or first light, proclaims that the night is over but does not yet manifest the full brightness of the day. It dispels night, it gives a beginning to the day, but still it is a mixture of light and darkness.
O Rex Gentium—December 22
O King of the Gentiles, yea, and desire thereof! O Corner-stone, that makest of two one, come to save man, whom Thou hast made out of the dust of the earth!7
“Out of his mouth came a sharp sword for striking down the nations. He will rule with an iron rod; it is he who will tread out in the winepress the blazing wrath of God the Almighty. A name was written on the part of the cloak that covered his thigh: "King of kings and Lord of lords." (Revelation 19:11-16)
Finally, the O antiphons orient us to think of the Second Coming. Christmas is not only about Christ the meek child, but Christ who comes to redeem and rule and trample the proud. He is the “desire of the nations.” This icon of Christ reminds us of Christ’s eternal rule over all things at the end of all things. The image is a typical representation of Christ in Majesty or Christ the Judge.
He is depicted surrounded by a mandorla and sitting on a rainbow throne, both signs of his glory. On the border of the image, the four creatures from Ezekiel represent the Gospel writers and surround the throne praising Christ the King as they sing “‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” (Revelation 6:8) The prophets hold messages of his coming in the corners of the page, and Christ the King confronts us with his piercingly direct gaze.
O Emmanuel—December 23
O Emmanuel, our King and our Law-giver, Longing of the Gentiles, yea, and salvation thereof, come to save us, O Lord our God!8
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us. (Matthew 1:23).
This last antiphon pithily summarizes the rest, revisiting the titles of previous antiphons. The illumination reminds us that Christ is still with us and that he is most fully present to us through the Church and in the Eucharist. One of the most gloriously colorful and gilded pages in the entire missal, this page is illuminated with the preface to the Eucharistic prayer, the Vere Dignum (It is truly meet and just). Unlike other pages, where one initial may be decorated, every single letter of every word here is decorated and written in gold. The illuminator sets the lamb of God against a golden cross which curls and buds, reminding us that the cross is the tree of life. Together, this symbolizes the heavenly liturgy, the Supper of the Lamb which we are invited to participate in even now. The inscription which surrounds Christ’s halo on the following page draws out this Eucharistic theme: “do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19)
Years ago Pope John Paul II spoke of the Eucharistic significance of this title in a Christmas message:
The divine Child whom we adore in the crib is the Emmanuel, God-with-us, who is really present in the sacrament of the Altar. The wonderful exchange, the "mirabile commercium," that takes place in Bethlehem between God and humanity becomes constantly present in the sacrament of the Eucharist, which for this reason is the source of the Church's life and holiness.
Before such a great gift and mystery we are left speechless! "Adoro te devote," we will say at Christmas, already making out in the shadows of a grotto the drama of the Cross and the shining triumph of Christ's Pasch.
May God bless you and your family as you prepare for Christmas.
EASM
PDF of the O Antiphons from Fish Eaters: here
Sources and further reading on the Stammheim Missal:
Teviotdale, Elizabeth C. The Stammheim Missal. Los Angeles: The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2001.
O Antiphons:
Gregory Dipippo: Reading the O Antiphons Forward
Videos of sung antiphons and Dom Gueranger’s commentary
Matthew Hazell: OThe O Antiphons: History, Theology, and Spirituality
Roseanne Sullivan:
I was only able to include a few of the inscriptions from the miniatures in this article. Eventually, I will separate each day into a separate article so that I can really do each miniature justice. If you’re interested in what one says, I’d be happy to let you know in the comments.
O Sapientia, quæ ex ore Altissimi prodiisti, attingens a fine usque ad finem, fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia: veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiæ.
The scripture that these Antiphons refer to is abundant. I will only select a few passages.
O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel, qui Moysi in igne flammæ rubi apparuisti, et ei in Sina legem dedisti: veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.
O Radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum, super quem continebunt reges os suum, quem Gentes deprecabuntur: veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.
O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel; qui aperis, et nemo claudit; claudis, et nemo aperit: veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis
O Oriens, splendor lucis æternæ, et sol justitiæ: veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis
O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum, lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum: veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo formasti.
O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum: veni ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster.
Thank you for this excellent article, Amelia. Pairing these magnificent images with the O Antiphons was a wonderful idea.
Thank you. This is a perfect meditation for the final week of Advent. What a beautiful missal!