The text below was issued by the Office of Liturgical Affairs of the Archdiocese of Manila. This is the Blessing of the Advent Wreath.
Lord God, your Church joyfully awaits the coming of its Savior,
who enlightens our hearts and dispels the darkness of ignorance and sin.
Pour forth your blessings upon us as we light the candles of this wreath;
may their light reflect the splendor of Christ,
who is Lord, forever and ever.
See anything wrong here?
Just like the Rite of Blessing of Salt and Water, the prayer does not directly bless the object that which is being blessed.
I do not know where the blessing below came from but it is posted in this website and I like it better than the one above.
O God, by whose word all things are sanctified, pour forth thy blessing upon this wreath, and grant that we who use it may prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ and may receive from Thee abundant graces. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
I also like this one posted in the liturgy page of Rev. Bosco Peters
Lord our God, we praise you for your Son, Jesus Christ.
He is Emmanuel, the hope of all peoples;
he is the wisdom that teaches and guides us;
he is the Saviour of every nation.
O God, let your blessing come upon our community gathered here before you.
Bless us (+) and our advent wreath (+)
May the light that shines forth from them illumine our way as we journey towards Christmas;
may the light that shines forth from them illumine our lives as we wait in hope for the birth of the Christ-child.
We ask this through Christ who is the Light of the World. Amen.
Notice that the priest is asking the Lord to "pour forth thy blessing upon this wreath" which should be the case since the wreath is the one being blessed and not the people present.
Now why in the world are our rite of blessings like the one above Are the liturgists deliberately doing this so that the blessings we ask from God do not fall upon the objects we want blessed? "Ask and you shall receive"
We aren't asking for it so naturally we won't get it, right?
Is this liturgical renewal or liturgical degradation?
You don't have to be a liturgist to see the difference.
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