Popular piety has developed three great novenas which are publicly prayed during the Ecclesiastical Year in preparation for some of the major feasts. These three are naturally connected to the three greatest feasts of the Church year. There is the Divine Mercy Novena, begun on Good Friday and completed on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Octave Day of Easter. Then, there is the first novena, which is based completely on Scripture, and this one is the Novena in preparation for Pentecost. Then, lastly, there is the novena in preparation for Christmas, which we are beginning throughout the Church.
The Christmas Novena is a wonderful gem of the Advent season. The Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy says, in regards to the Christmas novena:
"The Christmas novena began as a means of communicating the riches of the Liturgy to the faithful who were unable easily to grasp it. It has played a very effective role and can continue to play such a role. At the same time, in current conditions where the faithful have easier access to the Liturgy, it would seem desirable that vespers from the 17-23 of December should be more solemn by adopting the use of the "major antiphons", and by inviting the faithful to participate at the celebration. Such a celebration, held either before of after which the popular devotions to which the faithful are particularly attached, would be an ideal "Christmas novena", in full conformity with the Liturgy and mindful of the needs of the faithful. Some elements, such as the homily, the use of incense, and the intercessions, could also be expanded within the celebration of Vespers (103)."
I want to make very clear that I am in no way attempting to place this novena above, against, or even on the same plane as the Liturgy of the Hours, particularly the celebration of Vespers, i.e. Evening Prayer. The Liturgy of the Hours is part of the public prayer of the Church and is therefore, meant for all. However, I do believe one of the beauties of the Christmas novena is that it greatly supplements the Liturgy, as all authentic forms of popular piety will ultimately do.
In order to make this relationship clearer, I have slightly modified certain parts of the novena. Which can be found here. The general setup follows a liturgical format, which is part of the original format for it.
The novena begins with a plea that God may give us the grace so that we may praise Him with our voices and that He may make our prayers effective. The introduction then ends with the doxology. After begging God for His assistance, we instantly praise Him for His glory, for in all things it is right to give Him praise and glory for His love and goodness to us (1 Thessalonians 5:18). These formulas are taken directly from the Liturgy of the Hours, although I have modified the Glory Be so that it fits the popular form, instead of the liturgical format, to make easier reading for those not familiar with the Liturgy of the Hours.
The novena then moves into a responsorial text, designed to set the mysteries of Advent before us. This is the way it is found in Fr. Vachetta's original novena (obviously translated of course). The mysteries of Christ's coming we are called to consider are His Second Coming when He will renew all creation and create a new Heaven and a new earth, His being a descendent of David and thus in line to reign over Israel, how He is King of kings and Lord of lords and King of the Universe, the imminence of His coming, the fact that all will be subject to Him and every person will bow down to Him, and His birth as a little child in His first coming in Bethlehem.
The next part is a modification I made, in order to include the the Rorate Caeli, a traditional Advent text. The words come from the Book of Isaiah, and part of it was used and is used as the Introit and Introductory Antiphons for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, respectively. It was also used during Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Parts of it also find their place in various Advent texts. Its inclusion has been chosen to give a more liturgical overtone to the novena, as it connects us intimately to Christ's Second Coming. It includes a plea for His coming, so that the salvation of the world may be completed, but it also brings forth a sense of trust in our belief that He will come at the proper hour, appointed by God the Father from the dawn of time.
There is a short verse then, which leads us into the readings. This is a joyful antiphon which proclaims our joy at Christ to save us and calls for a proclamation to the entire world.
We then move into the readings, all taken directly from the liturgical texts of the Mass. There is a a reading from the Old Testament and then the Gospel reading for the day, with the exception of the first day. I chose the Old Testament readings for a relation they bore to the Gospel reading. These provide us the opportunity to further reflect on the Word of God, which the Church presents us with for the day. It would be appropriate to take a brief pause for reflection during the readings, if time allows. The Gospels over these days will present us with the accounts of how the birth of Christ came about, as given us by Matthew and Luke, allowing us to prepare just as those in the Gospel did for the Nativity of the Lord.
The Gospel reading is followed by the Magnificat with the O Antiphon for the day. These O Antiphons are Scriptural titles of our Lord and are constantly presented to us throughout these days. Those who do not pray the Liturgy of the Hours, will probably know them mostly from the hymn O Come, O Come Emmanuel, but they have been used for centuries now as the antiphon as Vespers. They have been written to rich chants, unfortunately not included in the novena. However, they are also presented in the Mass of the day, as the Alleluia verse. The inclusion of them in the novena possibly provides for the greatest connection it bears to the Liturgy.
It is worth noting that I will also include a daily meditation from December 17 through December 23, on the day's antiphon. These may be used in conjunction with the novena.
The antiphon is followed by the recitation of the Magnificat, Mary's great hymn of praise of God. Within it we are able to proclaim, with Mary, the wonders God has done throughout the ages, culminating in the mystery of Jesus Christ. In it, we also praise and thank God specifically for all the graces He has bestowed upon us. The antiphon used at the beginning of the Magnificat is then used to conclude it.
The novena concludes with a prayer that God will, by grace, allow us to always remain faithful to Him and live in expectation of Christ's coming, so that the Paraousia will be our salvation. The blessing used at the end is the one used at the end of Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer when it is not presided over by an ordained minister. Then, the final prayer is one for the Faithful Departed, that they may soon share in the vision of God, not through the intermediary of the Word made flesh, but face to face.
May you all pray well!
No comments:
Post a Comment