December 17
Advent Weekday (O Antiphons begin)
On December 17, the Church keeps a weekday of Advent, marked as a feria, but with a special character: this day begins the "O Antiphons," a series of ancient prayers recited during Vespers in the seven days leading up to Christmas. These antiphons, each beginning with the exclamation 'O' and addressing Christ with a different Messianic title from the Old Testament, express the deep longing of humanity for the Savior's coming. The period from December 17 to December 24 is a time of heightened expectation and preparation for the Nativity of the Lord. The use of the color violet underscores the season’s penitential and anticipatory nature. In the liturgy, the daily Mass readings shift to focus more intently on the mysteries leading directly to Christ’s birth. The Church invites all the faithful in these final days of Advent to deepen their prayer, reflection, and hope, knowing that the Lord's coming is very near.
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Questions about Advent Weekday (O Antiphons begin) (Novus Ordo Missae)
The liturgical day
Mass readings
ReadingGn 49, 1-2.8-10
In those days,
Jacob called his sons and said:
“Assemble yourselves! I want to reveal to you
what will happen to you in the days to come.
Gather together, listen, sons of Jacob,
listen to Israel, your father.
Judah, your brothers shall give you homage,
your hand will be on the neck of your enemies,
and the sons of your father will bow down before you.
Judah is a young lion.
You return from the prey, my son.
He has crouched down, he lies down like a lion;
who dares rouse him up?
The royal scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the staff of command from his descendants,
until the one comes to whom the power belongs,
to whom the peoples shall obey.”
– The word of the Lord.
PsalmPs 71 (72), 1-2, 3-4, 7-8, 17
O God, give your judgement to the king,
and your justice to a king’s son.
May he govern your people with justice,
and your poor with right judgement!
Mountains, bring peace to the people,
hills, bring forth righteousness!
May he judge the poor of your people,
save the needy, and crush the oppressor!
In his days shall justice flourish,
great peace till the moon is no more!
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth!
May his name be blessed forever;
during the sun, may his name abide!
In him shall all the families of the earth be blessed;
may all nations call him blessed!
GospelMt 1, 1-17
Genealogy of Jesus Christ,
son of David, son of Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah, by his union with Tamar, was the father of Perez and Zerah;
Perez was the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Aram,
Aram the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon, by his union with Rahab, was the father of Boaz;
Boaz, by his union with Ruth, was the father of Obed;
Obed was the father of Jesse,
Jesse was the father of King David.
David, by his union with the wife of Uriah, was the father of Solomon,
Solomon the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asa,
Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah,
Uzziah the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah,
Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers
at the time of the exile to Babylon.
After the exile to Babylon,
Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Akim,
Akim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary,
of whom Jesus was born,
who is called Christ.
The total number of generations, then, is:
from Abraham to David, fourteen generations;
from David to the exile to Babylon, fourteen generations;
from the exile to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.
– Let us acclaim the Word of God.
Liturgical texts: © AELF — aelf.org