The
‘O’ Antiphon for December 23rd celebrates the coming of Emmanuel
- “O Emmanuel our king and giver of law come to save us”.
That
Feast of Nativity we have marked on the 25th and continue to do so in
these days that follows Christmas.
The
year-end is a sequence of days that has some significance, celebrated by
different traditions at different dates in the Gregorian Calendar.
In
the West we take December 31- January 01 as the marker of New Year, the full
cycle of the earth’s rotation round the Sun completed yet again. We invest all
sorts of traditions with the date, make resolutions for the coming year and
reflect on the passing year with varying degrees of nostalgia.
What
has been significant in the events of 2016? And how might they affect the coming
months of 2017?
Many
have died this last year, caught up in the terrors of wars and terrorist
conflict, the casual, cold-bloodied killing of often defenceless men, women and
children at various places in our troubled world. Lost at sea seeking refuge,
bombed in their homes in once beautiful cities. The random terrorist attacks
have left a legacy of uncertainty in so many countries, exactly their intended
outcome.
But
of all that has happened, two events stand out for their long term consequence.
The
first was the Referendum last Summer here in
UK
that determined our leaving the EU after over 40 years of
membership. It was a vote that was based on questionable information,
bringing to a head a latent xenophobia in this country. It was a close vote that
left a people divided and resulted in a political meltdown in subsequent weeks
following the resignation of the British Prime Minister. The aftershocks
continue as the process for withdrawal enters the quagmire of negotiation and
legal process. The journey that we have begun has an outcome that is
uncertain, both for the
UK
and for the Community we have decided to leave.
It
was indeed an unexpected result, but no more so than the seismic political shock
of the
US
Presidential election, won by Trump in the early days of
November. During the Primaries, it seemed all but impossible that he could win
the nomination, yet alone the Presidency. His public statements in respect of
Moslems, with his willingness to impose a ban on their entry to the country, as
well as using deportation as a further option were at first laughed out of
court. A man expressing such views could never be elected –could he?
His
views of women and his degrading language that was so contemptuous of them would
ensure that he lost their vote – wouldn’t it?
And
his declared intention to build a wall between the
US
and
Mexico
was crazy – wasn’t it?
Yet
it happened, he will be inaugurated late in January of the coming year. We are
entering a period of uncertainty that is possibly more dangerous than the Cold
War of the late 20th C. We have to chart our course in the coming
year with both care and prayer.
Let’s
finish where we started. This year I have written a few words in reflection on
each of the ‘O’ Antiphons. Here
is the result for the final antiphon.
O
Emmanuel
O
Emmanuel, our king and Giver of Law
Come
to save us
From
an open,
outstretched
hand,
a
bent finger beckons,
a
movement that calls
from
a distance.
A
silent, gentle gesture
that
invites response,
closing
the space
between
two people,
the
caller asking,
offering
an intimacy
that
expresses trust,
offering gifts.
So
come
with
open hands
and
outspread arms
gather
us softly
with
each breaking dawn.
O
Emmanuel.
END
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