Christ I
| Christ I | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Advent Lyrics or Christ A |
| Author(s) | anonymous |
| Language | Old English |
| Date | unknown, possibly around 800 |
| Series | Old English Christ poems, along with Christ II and Christ III |
| Manuscript(s) | Exeter Book, fo. 8a-14a |
| Genre | religious poem in 12 subsections |
| Subject | The Advent of Christ |
Christ I, also Christ A or (The) Advent Lyrics, is a collection of twelve anonymous Old English poems on the coming of the Lord, preserved in the Exeter Book. Claes Schaar suggests that it may have been written between the end of the 8th century and the beginning of the 9th century.
The poem is assigned to a triad of Old English religious poems in the Exeter Book, known collectively as Christ. Christ comprises a total of 1664 lines and deals with Christ's Advent, Ascension and Last Judgment. It was originally thought to be one piece completed by a single author, but the poem is now broken up into three parts.
Christ I can be found on fols. 8a-14a of the Exeter Book. The Exeter Book is a collection of Old English poetry containing 123 folios. The book contains the items of the Cynewulf group, which is made up in part by Christ I. The collection also contains a number of other religious, allegorical, and category poems.
The lyrics included within Christ I selection expand upon antiphons known as the “O Antiphons”, which receive their name because they all begin with the Latin interjection “O”. An antiphon is a verse from the Holy Scripture that is to be sung before and after the reading of a psalm (Otten 1). The verse selected for the antiphon is chosen to reflect the fundamental ideas presented during the psalm. Seven of the antiphons in Christ I have come to be known as the “Seven Greater Antiphons” for their use in the Magnificat. The opening interjections of the “Seven Greater Antiphons” include, "O Sapientia", "O Adonai", "O Radix Jesse", "O Clavis David", "O Oriens", "O Rex Gentium", and "O Emmanuel". The remainder of the antiphons used in Christ I had come to be included with the “Greater Antiphons”: “O Virgo virginum”, “O Gabriel”, “O Rex pacifice”, “O Mundi Domina”, and “O Hierusalem”.
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