O Root of Jesse

"O root of Jesse, who stood as a sign for the people, before you kings shall remain silent, and to you the Gentiles shall make supplication: come to deliver us, and delay not." This "mysterious" O Antiphon reminds us clearly of Jesus' role as king and messiah, which might be somewhat overshadowed by the image of a baby in a manger. Yet even the nativity scenario contains strong references to his kingship: The angel proclaims: "The Savior--yes, the Messiah,--the Lord--has been born tonight in Bethlehem, the city of David." (Lk. 2: 11). The Magi come to worship the newborn king. But who is this Jesse and what, who is this root?
Jesse was the father of David and allusion to the root, or stump of Jesse is made in Isaiah as he describes the coming of the Messiah: "Out of the stump of David's family will grow a shoot--yes a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the Lord will be upon him. In that day the heir to David's throne will be a banner of salvation to all the world. The nations will rally to him, for the land where he lives will be a glorious place. He will raise a flag among the nations for Israel to rally around. He will gather the scattered people of Judah from the ends of the earth." (Is. 11: 1, 10, 12) In Revelation 22 we read: "I Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source (root) of David and the heir to his throne, I am the bright morning star." (Rev. 22:16)
The Messiah will rally all people, Jews and Gentiles alike, and instead of an earthly kingdom, he will transform David's kingdom into a spiritual kingdom, the church, and ultimately the kingdom of God at the end of time. More than just the celebration of the birth of the baby Jesus, Christmas is very much about the birth of a new life of the Spirit, of intimacy and union with God. We pray, "come to deliver us and delay not, so that with the angels we can sing in thanksgiving and praise: "Glory to God in the Highest."
Bro. Rene