O Emmanuel, Rex et Legifer noster
exspectatio Gentium, et Salvator earum:
veni ad salvandum nos, Domine, Deus noster.
O Emmanuel, our King and Lawgiver,
the Desire of all nations and their Salvation:
Come and save us, O Lord our God.
O Emmanuel
O come, O come, and be our God-with-us
O long-sought With-ness for a world without,
O secret seed, O hidden spring of light.
Come to us, Wisdom, come unspoken Name
Come Root, and Key and King, and holy Flame,
O quickened little wick so tightly curled,
Be folded with us into time and place,
Unfold for us the mystery of grace
And make a womb of all this wounded world.
O heart of heaven beating in the earth,
O tiny hope within our hopelessness
Come to be born, to bear us to our birth,
To touch a dying world with new-made hands
And make these rags of time our swaddling bands.
O come, O come, and be our God-with-us
O long-sought With-ness for a world without,
O secret seed, O hidden spring of light.
Come to us, Wisdom, come unspoken Name
Come Root, and Key and King, and holy Flame,
O quickened little wick so tightly curled,
Be folded with us into time and place,
Unfold for us the mystery of grace
And make a womb of all this wounded world.
O heart of heaven beating in the earth,
O tiny hope within our hopelessness
Come to be born, to bear us to our birth,
To touch a dying world with new-made hands
And make these rags of time our swaddling bands.
-- Malcolm Guite
4 comments:
these are all so beautiful...thank you so much for sharing..it is truly"from the sublime to the ridiculous", when I go from basking in these gems to writing more Cat-mas carols...[I can only blame the full moon, and ins-purr-ation for the latter...]
BTW..Cat-mas Carol,#13 "Carol of the Cat", is dedicated in part to Bixby... and "why I write", a post from a day or so ago mentions you both... ; ]
dear catsinger!!! You have an overflowing supply of creativity pouring out of you.
dear "dearest dragonfly", I am delighted to discover that you have been enjoying my antiphon sonnets, they came as a kind of gift and I am glad to share them. i have also been enjoying your blog posts, you have an eye for beauty and an ear for the felicitous phrase. should you be interested I have posted some new sonnets, on baptism and communion in the new writings page of my site
yours
Malcolm Guite
Oh, my eyes and soul well up in tears to see your name and to sense your generous presence! To be truthful, I've had some remorse... some convictions of having posted your sonnets without asking your permission first. I'm grateful for your kindness in blessing - after the fact - your poetry coming among us through such means. It fashioned the holiest of advents in my many years.
I have bathed in your baptism sonnet and will be back for much more.
Gratefully, DD
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