Advent is upon us! It is a time of waiting, a time of hope, a time of preparation, a time of prayer. The prayer of the Church throughout each and every Advent season is this: “Come, Lord Jesus.”

The hymnody of Advent is exceedingly rich. Among this richness is the classic “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” As you open your your hymnal to this hymn (357), you will also find the Great “O” Antiphons. These ancient prayers have long been used to count down the days until Christmas. As you can see, each begins by addressing the Lord with a different phrase: “O Wisdom,” “O Key of David,” “O Emmanuel,” and so on.