As the sidereal sun moves into Sagittarius at this time, the fourth Sunday in Advent is typified by the Sagittarian arcana of (14) Temperance, which also reflects the themes of this Sunday, namely purification, and the advent of the refiner’s fire as prophesied by Malachi and proclaimed as the Lamb of God by John the Baptist.
We note also that the Epistle for this day in the Book of Common Prayer is taken from Philippians 4: 4 (which is the source of the Introit for Gaudete Sunday), and touches upon one of the key themes of (14) Temperance, namely, “moderation”:
Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing: but in every thing, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4: 4
The Collect
O Lord, raise up (we pray thee) thy power, and come among us, and with great might succour us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness, we are sore let and hindered in running the race that is set before us, thy bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through the satisfaction of thy Son our Lord, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be honour and glory, world without end. Amen.
Book of Common Prayer
Old Testament Reading
Yea, before the day was I am he; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall let it?
Isaiah 43: 13
New Testament Reading
There standeth one among you, whom ye know not; He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me.
John 1: 26-27
Meditation
Without insulation nothing can be concentrated, and without concentration no magic action could be carried out.
Oswald Wirth, The Tarot of the Magicians, p. 98
Liturgical Affirmation
Scindite corda vestra et non vestimenta vestra.
Canet tuba, et mortui resurgent incorrupti.
Qui biberit ex aqua, quam ego dabo ei, non sitiet in aeternum.
Rend your hearts and not your garments. The trump shall sound, and the dead shall arise incorruptible. Whosoever drinketh from the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.
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