#tabor light

[apenitentialprayer]

An Invitation to Conversion

Christ, who always practiced in His life what He preached, before beginning His ministry spent 40 days and 40 nights in prayer and fasting, and began His public ministry with the joyful message: "The Kingdom of God is at hand." To this He added the command: "Repent and believe in the Gospel" [cf. Mk 1:15]. These words constitute, in a way, the compendium of the whole Christian life. The Kingdom of God announced by Christ can be entered only by a "change of heart" (metanoia), that is to say through that intimate and total change and renewal of the entire man —of all his opinions, judgments, and decisions— which takes place in him in the light of the sanctity and charity of God, the sanctity and charity which were manifested to us in the Son and communicated fully. The invitation of the Son to metanoia becomes all the more inescapable inasmuch as He not only preaches it but Himself offers an example. Christ, in fact, is the supreme model for those doing penance. He willed to suffer punishment for sins which were not His but those of others. In the presence of Christ man is illumined with a new light and consequently recognizes the holiness of God and the gravity of sin. Through the word of Christ a message is transmitted to him which invites him to conversion and grants forgiveness of sins. These gifts he attains fully in baptism. This sacrament, in fact, configures him to the passion, death, and Resurrection of the Lord, and places the whole future of the life of the baptized under the seal of this ministry. Therefore, following the Master, every Christian must renounce himself, take up his own cross, and participate in the sufferings of Christ. Thus transformed into the image of Christ's death, he is made capable of meditating on the glory of the Resurrection. Furthermore, following the Master, he can no longer live for himself, but must live for Him who loves him and gave Himself for him. He will also have to live for his brethren, completing "in his flesh that which is lacking in the sufferings of Christ . . . for the benefit of His Body, which is the Church" [Col 1:24].

- Pope Paul VI, Paenitemini: Or, Apostolic Constitution on Fasting and Abstinence (I.8-12). Original Latin of the bolded phrase below:

In Christi conspectu homo positus, nova luce collustratur, atque adeo cum Dei sanctitatem tum peccati malitiam agnoscit.

Beyond Passover, by Valerie Sjodin

[apenitentialprayer]

Christ as He is: God Made Man, That is, God Made Visible, by Elizabeth Wang

Christ was born, lived, and died in poverty, contempt, and sorrow; […] It was the work of the Holy Spirit to extol, spread, and exalt the glory of Word-made-Man all over the world, and to make the most luminous Holy Name of Christ known and resplendent more than the sun before all the nations […] Oh, new Face of the universe! The Most Holy Name of Jesus, His divine law, the worth of His Passion, the glory of His Resurrection were triumphally celebrated with innumerable miracles, and with the splendor of heavenly virtues and of true holiness; when these appeared, vices were exposed as deformities and hid themselves in the darkness; every knee bent before the most august Name of Jesus, the Savior of the World. This great Name occupied and filled the heavens and the earth with its immense light.

Maria Gaetana Agnesi (Introduction to her The Mystic Heaven, That Is, Contemplation of the Virtues, Mysteries, and Excellence of Our Lord Jesus Christ) trans. Glauco Schettini

[apenitentialprayer]

Short Akathist to the Divine Child

Kontakion 1

The Lord is born today as a meek child spreading Divine Light over the weary towns and throughout the tainted world.  The ancient earth, trodden by many, gratefully opens a mountainside and sweeps away the formidable rocks, that everyone from near and far might journey to its cave and say: Glory to You, Jesus, Divine Child Who brings the gift of salvation to all.

Ikos 1

Light our way, little Christ Child, that we may worship and adore You.  Some have waited and many have strayed, but You welcome every sojourner who sees the star and yearns for enlightenment.  We are drawn forward to the Divine Light, and we respond with a thankful offering of praises:

Glory to You, Jesus, for You uphold the wondrous star that shows the way to the Light of all created light.

Glory to You, Jesus, may the heavens guide the wayward and illuminate the lost.

Glory to You, Jesus, for You shine Your marvelous radiance upon the gloom of our nightly slumber.

Glory to You, Jesus, may the distraught hasten forward on the path to deliverance and Eternity.

Glory to You, Jesus, Divine Child Who brings the gift of salvation to all.

Kontakion 2

Lord Jesus, You bring Divine Light and You are that very Light, God of God, and at the same time You are man, born of the Virgin Mary and recognized even by the animals.  Your innocence and light permeate not only the divine cave but the entire world, that everyone might be saved and say: Alleluia.

Ikos 2

You invite people of all nations to honor Your birth, Most Holy Child and Lord God.  We therefore bring our sins and sorrows to You and, in response, You bestow upon us the gifts of love and truth, mercy and peace.  You came into the world to save us, and it is our joy to praise You today and always:

Glory to You, Jesus, for You bear the precious treasure of our undeserved redemption.

Glory to You, Jesus, may the penniless obtain true and everlasting riches.

Glory to You, Jesus, for You pour Your heavenly mercy into our bleak caves of misfortune.

Glory to You, Jesus, may every earthly dignitary bow before the Throne of Innocence.

Glory to You, Jesus, Divine Child Who brings the gift of salvation to all.

Kontakion 3

We see the love of the Father for mankind, and the love of the Virgin for her Son, and the love of the Christ Child for the Father.  Herein is love: to glorify God and to uplift one another. Herein is contentment:  to do the will of God with a glad heart and a sober mind, and to say to the all the world: Alleluia.

Ikos 3

The beckoning of the Divine Child entails a decision: whether to embrace the Light of Love or to dig down into the darkness of bitterness.  Those who choose life are called upon to sing heartfelt praises to the only Lover of the human race:

Glory to You, Jesus, for You entrusted the Virgin Mary to become the Mother of the whole universe.

Glory to You, Jesus, may the faithful receive grace and emulate the readiness of the holy Handmaid.

Glory to You, Jesus, and to Your splendid Incarnation as a child, now resting in the arms of a humble Mother.

Glory to You, Jesus, may all believers care for one another and flow forth with the fruits of sanctified life.

Glory to You, Jesus, Divine Child Who brings the gift of salvation to all.

Kontakion 4

You became a little child, Christ God, and we also are to be like children.  There was no malice in Your heart, no confusion in Your mind, and no wavering in Your ministry.  Even as an infant, You enlightened all those who came to the holy cave and who said: Alleluia.

Ikos 4

Lord Jesus, You partook of our human nature in order to save us from sin and death, according to the will of the Father.  Teach us also to attend to His heavenly will, and to be lights in the world but not of the world.  May God deal kindly with us as we endeavor to walk in the True Light. We praise You, All-Holy Child and Ruler of All, for You know us and You gather us around Your innocence and Kingship:

Glory to You, Jesus, for You glorified God the Father and manifested Divine Light on earth.

Glory to You, Jesus, may the newborn and the yet unborn have eyes to behold the Beloved Christ Child.

Glory to You, Jesus, and to Your perfect peace, now reigning in the hearts of Your redeemed people around the world.

Glory to You, Jesus, may all men, women, and children confess Your birth and find joy under the wondrous star.

Glory to You, Jesus, Divine Child Who brings the gift of salvation to all.

Kontakion 5

Christ our God, You are the only Divine Child and the only Savior.  On the day of Your birth, You offer the gift of salvation and everlasting life to those in bondage to sin, to the sick and suffering, to the wayward and lost, and to the poor and unfortunate: that all might worship and adore You and comprehend true happiness. Our only desire is to love You for Who You are, to praise You with our words, and to proclaim You with our deeds. Alleluia.  Alleluia.  Alleluia.

Closing Verse

We give thanks to Jesus Christ for becoming one of us, for He thereby revealed His innocence and overcame our corruptibility.

Akathist Source. Top Image: Newborn King, by Dan Freed. Source. Bottom Image: Vision of St. Brigid of the Nativity, by Niccolò di Tommaso, after 1373. Source.

[apenitentialprayer]

The world was grey, the mountains old* When pale Galilean shone bright with gold; He brought with Him the stream of Lethe, Our sins lay drowned in brook beneath; We are refreshed by Heaven’s dew, From mountaintop Christ’s light renews; A Voice above says “My dear Son,” Revealing redemption to everyone; Joy divine has come at last, Returning beauty of primeval past; Olympus is shocked, but Tabor sings, On mountaintop, to sky earth clings. *First line taken from J.R.R. Tolkien’s Song of Durin

[crnkl]