From Shepherding of stars that gave
Toward heav'nly fields of light,
I come with tidings to amaze
You waters in the night.
Your shepherd King from starlit hall
Bends down to wear lands,
Lies mangered low in cattle stall.
Go touch his infant hands.
This night your King brings from afar
The virgin's lullabye,
The Wise Men's faith, a guiding star,
And love from God Most High.
He shepherds from the thistled place
The flocks by thickets torn;
His pierced hands heal all your race
Sore wounded by the thorn.
Embrace the Christchild, and with songs
Bind up the hearts in pain.
The shepherd-healer-king let throngs
Sing glorias again.
Tune: Angelus emittitur
Gabriel's message does away
Satan's curse and Satan's sway,
out of darkness brings our Day:
Refrain:
so, behold,
all the gates of heaven unfold.
He that comes despised shall reign;
he that cannot die, be slain;
death by death its death shall gain: Refrain
Weakness shall the strong confound;
by the hands, in grave clothes wound,
Adam's chains shall be unbound. Refrain
By the sword that was his own,
by that sword, and that alone,
shall Goliath be o'erthrown: Refrain
Art by art shall be assailed;
to the cross shall Life be nailed;
from the grave shall hope be hailed: Refrain
Labels: 16th c., christmas, Neale
¶ Tuesday, January 23, 2007 0 comments
I Wonder as I Wander
(Appalachia)
Words and Music collected by John Jacob Niles
MIDI / Noteworthy Composer / PDF
1. I wonder as I wander out under the sky,
How Jesus the Savior did come for to die.
For poor on'ry people like you and like I...
I wonder as I wander out under the sky.
2. When Mary birthed Jesus 'twas in a cow's stall,
With wise men and farmers and shepherds and all.
But high from God's heaven a star's light did fall,
And the promise of ages it then did recall.
3. If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing,
A star in the sky, or a bird on the wing,
Or all of God's angels in heav'n for to sing,
He surely could have it, 'cause he was the King.
William L. Simon, ed., Reader’s Digest Merry Christmas Songbook (1981)
John Jacob Niles, the singer and collector of folk songs, said that he based his "I Wonder As I Wander" on a line or two of haunting music that he heard sung by a young girl in a small North Carolina town. He asked her to sing the few notes over and over, paying her a few pennies each time, until he had jotted it all down in his notebook. So close was the finished song to its Appalachian inspiration that Niles is often cited as arranger of the tune rather than its creator. The melody’s minor keg; minor intervals and unfinished cadences, as well as the poem s questioning pensiveness, make this one of the most plaintive of carols.
Earthly Delights: Xmas Carols
This carol was collected in Murphy, North Carolina in July 1933 by John Jacob Niles (1892-1980), a leading American folksong collector, who, it is said, paid a young travelling evangalist Annie Morgan 25c an hour to sing it until he had memorized it. Niles published it in his 1934 Songs of the Hill-Folk. It is often referred to as a traditional Appalachian carol, but just how far back it goes is not clear. Some believe it was only a generation old when collected. Its questioning pensiveness and gentle free speech lilt give it, nevertheless, a certain timeless quality.
Em Am7 Am6/7 Am7 Bm Em D
1 I wonder as I wan -der out under the sky
2 When Mary birthed Je - sus, ‘twas in a cows' stall,
3 If Jesus had want-ed for any wee thing:
4 I wonder as I wan -der out under the sky,
Bsus4 Em Am7 Am6/7 Am7 C C/b5 C Em
1 How Jesus, the Sav-ior, did come for to die.
2 With wisemen and far-mers and shep-herds and all
3 A star in the sky, or a bird on the wing;
4 How Jesus, the Sav-ior did come for to die
(Em) Am7 Am6/7 Am7 C C/b5 C D9
1 For poor, ornery peo-ple like you and like I
2 But high from God's hea-ven a star's light did fall,
3 Or all of God's an -gels in heaven to sing,
4 For poor, ornery peo-ple like you and like I
Bsus4 Em Am7 Am9 CM7 Bsus4/b6 Am9 Em
1 I wonder as I wan-der, out un - der the sky.
2 And the promise of a - ges it then did re -call.
3 He surely could have had it, ‘cause He was the King!
Bsus4 Em Am7 Am9 CM7 Bsus4/b6 Am9 Emsus2
4 I wonder as I wan-der, out un - der the sky.
¶ Tuesday, January 23, 2007 0 comments
Words: William C. Dix, The Manger Throne, 1865. Music: Greensleeves, 16th Century English melody (MIDI, score). |
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(Am/Dm/Em) (C/F/G) (G/C/D) (Em/Am7/Bm7) (F/Bb/C) (Dm7/Gm7/Am7) (E/A/B) (A/D/E)
Am C G Em F Dm7 E (Em G D Bm C Am7 B)
What Child is this who laid to rest on Mary's lap is sleeping
Am C G Em F E Asus Am G (Em G D Bm C B Esus Em D)
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet while shepherds watch are keeping
C G Em F Dm E (G D Bm C Am B)
This, this is Christ the King, whom shepherds guard and angels sing
C G Em F E F E (G D Bm C B C B)
Haste, haste to bring Him laud, the Babe, the Son, the glorious One
F E Am (C B Em)
The Babe, the Son of Mary
Am G C (Em D G)
Who is this Child asleep in the manger
Am G Fmaj7 (Em D Cmaj7)
Tender and mild, this intimate stranger
C G/B Dm7 Am7 F (G D/F Am7 Em7 C)
Recklessly, wildly loving a dangerous world.
Am G C (Em D G)
Who is this Light invading our darkness
Am G Fmaj7 (Em D Cmaj7)
Glorious might the sun rising for us
C G/B Dm7 Am7 F G (G D/F Am7 Em7 C D)
Conquering night He captures the hardest of hearts
F (C)
We sing
C G (G D)
This is our God living and breathing
Dm7 F (Am7 C)
Call him courageous, relentless and brave
C G (G D)
This is our God, loving and reaching
Dm7 F (Am7 C)
Scandalous mercy and mighty to save
C G (G D)
Hallelujah, this is our God
Am F (Em C)
Hallelujah, this is our God
C G (G D)
Hallelujah, this is our God
F G F (C D C)
Sing praise
Who is this One who will not condemn us
Why would He come to shoulder our sentence
Nothing we've done will keep him from giving us grace
Who is this One? We watch and we're speechless
God's only Son, embracing our weakness
By His death He kills death, by His life He frees us to live
And we sing
This is our God, suff'ring and dying
Call Him the Hero redeeming the lost
This is our God, love sacrificing
All that is holy, accepting our cross
a son is given to us;
he will bear the symbol of cominion on his shoulder,
and his title will be:
Wonderful Counsellor,
Mighty Hero,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Peace.
- Elias 9:6 (REB)
Labels: 16th c., 19th c., chords, christmas
¶ Tuesday, January 23, 2007 0 comments
Words: Christina Rossetti, 1872; she wrote these words in response to a request from the magazine Scribner’s Monthly for a Christmas poem. Music: Cranham, Gustav T. Holst, 1906 (MIDI, score). |
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C G/B Am G
C G/B Am G C
F D(5th) G
C G
C G/B Am G C
Labels: chords, christmas, modern
¶ Tuesday, January 23, 2007 0 comments
 John M. Neale (1818-1866) | Words: Unknown author, 11th Century (Sancte Dei pretiose); translated from Latin to English by John M. Neale in the Hymnal Noted, 1852, alt. Music: St. Thomas (Webbe), Samuel Webbe, Motetts or Antiphons, 1792 (MIDI, score). |  Samuel Webbe, Sr. (1740-1816) |
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Labels: 11th c., christmas, latin, Neale
¶ Tuesday, January 23, 2007 0 comments
One small dream of a savior tonight.
One small hand reaching out to the starlight.
One small savior of life. Ooh.
One king bringing his gold and riches.
One king ruling and army of might.
One king kneeling with incense and candlelight.
One king bringing us life. Ooh.
(chorus)
See Him lying, a cradle beneath Him.
See Him smiling in the stall.
See His mother praising the Father.
See His tiny eyelids fall.
See the shepherds kneeling before Him.
See the kings on bended knee.
See the mother praising the Father.
See the blessed infant sleep.
One small child in a land of a thousand.
One small dream of a savior tonight.
One small hand reaching out to the starlight.
One small savior of life.
Verses:
Am G Am G / Am C D E
Am G Am G / Am G F Em7 Dm E7 Am
Chorus:
C Csus C Csus / C G Am D G
C Csus C Csus / C G Am D G E
Verses:
Dm C Dm C / Dm F G A
Dm C Dm C / Dm C Bb Am7 Gm A7 Dm
Chorus:
F Fsus F7 Fsus / F C/E Dm G/B C
F Fsus F7 Fsus / F C/E Dm G/B C A
Labels: David Meece, epiphany, modern
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
Words: Liturgy of St. James, 4th Century (Σιγησάτο παρα σὰρξ βροτεία); translated from Greek to English by Gerard Moultrie, 1864.
Music: Picardy, French carol melody; harmony from The English Hymnal, 1906, number 318 (MIDI, score).
If you have access to a picture of Gerard Moultrie that we could put online, please click here.
A Dm Am G / Am Dm E7
Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth, (or descending)
Our full homage to demand. (or comes our homage to demand)
King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.
Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.
At His feet the six wingèd seraph,
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!
Labels: 4th c., chords, christmas, eastern, eucharist
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
John M. Neale (1818-1866) | Words: Unknown author, written between the 10th and 13th Centuries (A Patre Unigenitus); translated from Latin to English by John M. Neale, St. Margaret’s Hymnal, 1875, alt. Music: Deus Tuorum Militum, Grenoble Antiphoner, 1753 (MIDI, score). |
To us the only Son came down;
By death the font to consecrate,
The faithful to regenerate.
Beginning from His home on high
In human flesh He came to die;
Creation by His death restored,
And shed new joys of life abroad.
Glide on, O glorious Sun, and bring
The gift of healing on Your wing;
To every dull and clouded sense
The clearness of Your light dispense.
Abide with us, O Lord, we pray;
The gloom of darkness chase away;
Your work of healing, Lord, begin,
And take away the stain of sin.
Lord, once You came to earth’s domain
And, we believe, shall come again;
Be with us on the battlefield,
From every harm Your people shield.
To You, O Lord, all glory be
For this Your blest epiphany;
To God Whom all His hosts adore,
And Holy Spirit evermore.
THE FATHER’S SOLE BEGOTTEN SON
 Thomas B. Pollock (1836-1896) | Words: Unknown author, between the 10th & 13th Centuries (A Patre Unigenitus); translated from Latin to English by Thomas B. Pollock in Hymns Ancient and Modern (HAM), 1889, and recast by the compilers of HAM in 1904. Music: Trinity College, John B. Dykes (1823-1876) (MIDI, score). |  John B. Dykes (1823-1876) |
Was born, the virgin’s Child, on earth;
His cross for us adoption won,
The life and grace of second birth.
Forth from the height of Heav’n He came,
In form of man with man abode;
Redeemed His world from death and shame,
The joys of endless life bestowed.
Redeemer, come with power benign,
Dwell in the souls that look for Thee;
O let Thy light within us shine
That we may Thy salvation see.
Abide with us, O Lord, we pray,
Dispel the gloom of doubt and woe;
Wash every stain of guilt away,
Thy tender healing grace bestow.
Lord, Thou hast come, and well we know
That Thou wilt likewise come again;
Thy kingdom shield from every foe,
Thy honor and Thy rule maintain.
Eternal glory, Lord, to Thee,
Whom, now revealed, our hearts adore;
To God the Father glory be,
And Holy Spirit evermore.
Words: Unknown author, 15th Century (Apparuit benignitas); Benjamin Webb translated a cento beginning with O amor quam exstaticus from Latin to English for The Hymnal Noted, 1854.
Music: Deo Gracias, The Agincourt Song, 1415 (MIDI, score). Alternate tunes:
- Canonbury, Robert A. Schumann, 1839 (MIDI, score)
- Eisenach, Johann H. Schein, 1628 (MIDI, score)
- Melcombe, Samuel Webbe, Sr., 1782 (MIDI, score)
If you have access to a photo of Benjamin Webb that we could put online, please click here.
O love, how deep, how broad, how high,
It fills the heart with ecstasy,
That God, the Son of God, should take
Our mortal form for mortals’ sake!
He sent no angel to our race
Of higher or of lower place,
But wore the robe of human frame
Himself, and to this lost world came.
For us baptized, for us He bore
His holy fast and hungered sore,
For us temptation sharp He knew;
For us the tempter overthrew.
For us He prayed; for us He taught;
For us His daily works He wrought;
By words and signs and actions thus
Still seeking not Himself, but us.
For us to wicked men betrayed,
Scourged, mocked, in purple robe arrayed,
He bore the shameful cross and death,
For us gave up His dying breath.
For us He rose from death again;
For us He went on high to reign;
For us He sent His Spirit here,
To guide, to strengthen, and to cheer.
To Him Whose boundless love has won
Salvation for us through His Son,
To God the Father, glory be
Both now and through eternity.
Labels: 15th c., epiphany, Thomas a Kempis
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
of glory that the Church may share,
which Christ upon the mountain shows,
where brighter than the sun he glows!
The law and prophets there have place,
the chosen witnesses of grace;
the Father's voice from our the cloud
proclaims his only Son aloud.
With shining face and bright array,
Christ deigns to manifest today
what glory shall be theirs above
who joy in God with perfect love.
And faithful hearts are raised on high
by this great vision's mystery;
for which in joyful strains we raise
the voice of prayer, the hymns of praise.
O Father, with the eternal Son,
and Holy Spirit, ever One,
vouchsafe to bring us by thy grace
to see thy glory face to face.
Words: Latin, fifteenth century;
trans. Hymns Ancient & Modern, 1861
Music: Wareham, Aeterne Rex altissime, O nata Lux de Lumine, Sandys Psalm 8
Meter: LM
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- “O eternal and sovereign King, and Redeemer of the faithful, to whom the annihilation of death brought a triumph of the greatest glory:”
- “Thou didst ascend above the orbits of the stars, whither the sovereignty over all things summoned Thee, which sovereignty was given Thee from heaven, not by men.” Cœlitus, adv. from above, by the Father. Data est mihi omnis potestas in cœlo et in terra (Matt. 28, 18).
- “So that the threefold fabric of the universe, creatures (condita) of heaven, of earth, and of hell, may now in submission bend the knee to Thee.” Condita = creata. Machina, order structure, fabric, kingdom. Ut in nomine Jesu omne genu flectatur cœlestium, terrestrium, et infernorum (Phil. 2, 10).
- “The Angels tremble, beholding the altered lot of mortals: flesh sinned, Flesh cleanses from sin, the God-Man reigns as God.” Dei caro: lit., “the flesh of God reigns as God.” Vicem, lot, estate, condition; versam, changed, reversed.
- “Be Thou Thyself our joy, our abiding reward in heaven, Thou who, surpassing all earthly joys, dost rule over the fabric of the universe.”
- “Therefore, praying we beseech Thee, pardon all our sins, and by Thy heavenly grace raise aloft our hearts to Thee.”
- “That when Thou dost unexpectedly begin to shine in splendor on a cloud as judge, Thou mayest remit the punishments due, and restore our lost crowns.” Et tunc videbunt Filium hominis venientem in nube cum potestate magna, et majestate (Luke 21, 27).
Jesus, Redeemer of the Earth:
more bright than day your face did show,
Your reiment whiter than the show.
Two prophets, who had faith to see,
with your elect found company;
the heavens aboveyour glory names,
your Father's voice His Son proclaimed.
May all who seek to praise aright
through purer lives show forth Your light
To You, the King of glory, now
all faithful hearts adoring bow.
Labels: 10th c., epiphany, latin
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
O Light of light, by love inclined
Jesus, Redeemer of mankind,
with loving-kindness deign to hear
from suppliant voices praise and prayer.
Thou who to raise our souls from hell
didst deign in fleshly form to dwell,
vouchsafe us, when our race is run,
in thy fair body to be one.
More bright than day thy face did show,
thy raiment whiter than the snow,
when on the mount to mortals blest
man's maker thou was manifest.
Two prophets, that had faith tosee,
with thine elect found company,
where unto each, divinely shown,
the Godhead veiled in form was known.
The heavens above his glory named,
the Father's voice his Son proclaimed;
to whom, the King of glory now,
all faithful hearts adoring bow.
May all who seek thy praise aright
through purer lives show forth thy light;
so to the brightness of the skies
by holy deeds our hearts shall rise.
Eternal God, to thee we raise,
the King of kings, our hymn of praise,
who Three in One and One in Three
doth live and reign eternally.
Words: Latin, tenth century;
trans. Laurence Housman, 1906
Music: Whitehall, Elmhust, Jesu dulcis memoria
Meter: LM
Labels: 10th c., epiphany, latin
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
King Herod tembled for his throne;
but He who offers heavenly birth
sought not the kingdoms of this Earth
The Eastern sages saw from far
And followed on his guiding star;
by light their way to Light they trod
and by their gifts confessed their God
Within the Jordan's sacred flood
the heavenly Lamb in meekness stood,
that He, to whom no sin was known
Might cleanse His people from their own
Oh, what a miracle divine,
when water reddened into wine!
He spoke the word, and forth it flowed
in streams that nature ne'er bestowed.
All glory, Jesus, be to Thee
for this Thy glad epiphany:
whom with the Father we adore
and Holy Ghost forevermore.
Labels: 5th c., Caelius Sedulius, epiphany, Neale
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
| This collection of Hymns reveals the inspiration that the first millennium of Christianity had on the nineteenth century. Translations, or more accurately interpretations, of Greek and Latin hymns into English enriched the worship of the church, bringing her back to her roots. As an Orthodox Christian of English and Welsh heritage, I hope to bring these hymns with us on our journey into the next millennium of the Church via the internet. It is also a bridge between the Western and Eastern Rites of Orthodoxy. |  |
Interpretations from the Greek
St. Anatolius
- The Day is Past & Over* (Neale) "St. Anatolius"
- Fierce was the Wild Billow (Neale) "Carlisle New", "Euroclydon", or "St. Issey"
- The Lord and King of All Things* (Neale) "Wohlauf, Thut Nicht Verzagen"
- St. Andrew of Crete
- Christian Dost Thou See Them* (Neale)"St. Andrew of Crete"
- Whence Shall My Tears Begin? (Neale)
- St. Clement of Alexandria
- Shepherd of Tender Youth* (Dexter) "Olivet (Mason)" or "Kirby Bedon"
- St. Ephraim the Syrian
- The Pearl (St. Pachomius Library)
Hymns for Epiphany (A.E. Johnston)
- Hymns on Fasting
Hymns on the Nativity (J.B. Morris)
- St. Germanus (634-734)
- A Great and Mighty Wonder* (Neale) "Es Ist Ein Ros"
-
St. Gregory Nazianzus
- Lord to Our Humble Prayers Attend* (Brownlie) "Beatus"
- O Light That Knew No Dawn* (Brownlie) "Waverton"
- St. John of Damascus (675-749)
- The Day of Resurrection* (Neale)"Lancashire"
- Come Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain* (Neale)"St. Kevin"
- Those Eternal Bowers* (Neale)"St. Alban's"
- Thou Hallowed Chosen Morn of Praise* (Neale) "Eisenach"
- St. Joseph the Hymnographer (d.883)
- Stars of the Morning* (Neale) "Trisagion"
- Stand We on Olivet, Mark Him Ascend (Neale) Canon for Ascension Day
- Let Our Choir New Anthems Raise* (Neale) "St. Kevin"
- Let Us Now Our Voices Raise* (Neale) "Tempus Adest Floridum"
- O Happy Band of Pilgrims* (Neale) "St. Edith (St. Hilda)"
- Liturgy of St. James
- Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence* (Moultrie) "Picardy"
- St. Methodius of Olympus
- Behold the Bridegroom Cometh* (Moultrie) "Kingsfold" (Vaughan Williams)
Behold the Bridegroom Draweth Nigh* (Moorsom) "Geronimo"
- Synesius of Cyrene (c.375-430)
- Lord Jesus, Think on Me* (Chatfield) "Southwell"
- Anonymous
- Let Thy Blood in Mercy Poured* (Brownlie) "Luise"
- The King Shall Come* (Brownlie) "St. Stephen"
- Hail Gladdening Light* (Keble) "Sundown"
- O Gladsome Light* (Bridges) "Le Cantique de Siméon" (Louis Bourgeois)
Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones* (J.A.L. Riley) "Lasst Uns Erfreuen"
- Interpretations from the Latin
- Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (348-413)
- All Hail, Ye Little Martyr Flowers* (Riley) "Saratt"
Earth has Many a Noble City* (Caswall) "Stuttgart"
Now with Creation's Morning Song* (Caswall/Longfellow) "Festus"
Of the Father's Love Begotten* (Neale) "Divinum Mysterium"
The Winged Heralds of the Day* (Neale) "Cathemerinon (Ales diei nuntius)"
Ye Clouds & Darkness, Hosts of Night* (R.M. Pope) "Wareham"
- St. Ambrose of Milan (340-397)
- Come, Holy Ghost, Who Ever One* (Newman) "Ferial"
Come Thou Redeemer of the Earth* (Neale) "Puer Nobis Nascitur"
Creator of the Earth & Sky* (Bigg) "St. Gregory"
The Dawn is Sprinkling in the East* (Caswall) "Wareham"
Eternal Gifts of Christ the King* (Neale) "Aeterna Christi Munera"
Eternal Glory of the Sky* (Neale) "Wareham"
Morning* (Newman) "Lancaster"
The Morning Kindles All the Sky* (E.R. Charles) "Lowry"
Now that the Daylight Dies Away* (Newman) "St. Flavian"
Now that the Daylight Fills the Skies* (Neale) "Warrington"
Now that the Sun is Gleaming Bright* (Newman) "Abiding Grace"
O Trinity of Blessed Light* (Neale) "Bromley" or "Westminster"
- O Splendor of God's Glory Bright* (Bridges/Neale) "Wareham"
- O God of All Strength & Power* (Neale) "Ludborough"
- O Strength & Stay* (Ellerton) "Strength & Stay"
- O God of Truth, O Lord of Might* (Neale) "Ferial"
- Caelius Sedulius (5th Century)
- From East to West, From Shore to Shore* (Ellerton) "Trinity College"
From Lands that See the Sun Arise* (Neale) "St. John's Highlands"
When Christ's Appearing was Made Known* (Neale) "Erhalt Uns, Herr"
Why, Impious Herod, Shouldst Thou Fear* (Dearmer) "St. Venantius"
- Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus (6th c.)
- Hail Thee, O Festival Day* "Salve Festa Dies"
- The Royal Banners Forward Go* (Neale) "Hamburg"
- See the Destined Day Arise* (Mant) "Halle"
Sing, My Tongue, the Glorious Battle* (Dearmer/Neale) "Picardy"
Welcome, Happy Morning!* (Ellerton) "Fortunatus"
- St. Gregory the Great (540-604)
- Blessed Creator of the Light* (Chandler) "Vienna"
Father, We Praise Thee, Now the Night is Over* (Dearmer) "Christe Sanctorum"
The Glory of These 40 Days* (Bell) "Spires"
Now, When the Dusky Shades of Night* "Laus Matutina"
O Blessed Creator of the Light* (Neale) "Bromley"
O Christ, Our King, Creator, Lord* (Neale) "Cromer"
This Day the First of Days was Made* (Yattendon Hymnal) "Andernach"
- Rhabanus Maurus (9th c.)
- Come, Holy Ghost, Our Souls Inspire* (Cosin) "Veni Creator"
- Theodulph of Orleans (760-821)
- All Glory, Laud and Honour* (Neale) "St. Theodulph"
- Venerable Bede (673-735)
- A Hymn of Glory Let Us Sing (Webb) "Lasst Uns Erfreuen"
The Hymn for Conquering Martyrs Raise* (Neale) "Wer da Wonet"
Anonymous
- Draw Nigh and Take the Body of the Lord* (Neale) "Penetentia", or "Ellers"
Come, O Creator Spirit Blest* (Caswall) "Grace Church"
Hark! A Thrilling Voice is Sounding* (Caswall) "Merton (Monk)"
Labels: ancient hymns, list
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
 Edward Caswall (1814-1878) | Words: Aurelius Prudentius (348-413) (O sola magnarum urbium); translated from Latin to English by Edward Caswall, Lyra Catholica, 1849. Music: Stuttgart, in Psalmodia Sacra, by Christian F. Witt (Gotha, Germany: 1715); adapted by Henry J. Gauntlett (1805-1876) (MIDI, score). If you have access to a picture of Aurelius Prudentius or Christian Witt that we could put online, please click here. |
Bethlehem, thou dost all excel;
Out of thee the Lord from Heaven
Came to rule His Israel.
Fairer than the sun at morning
Was the star that told His birth,
To the world its God announcing
Seen in fleshly form on earth.
Eastern sages at His cradle
Make oblations rich and rare;
See them give, in deep devotion,
Gold and frankincense and myrrh.
Sacred gifts of mystic meaning:
Incense doth their God disclose,
Gold the King of kings proclaimeth,
Myrrh His sepulcher foreshows.
Jesu, whom the Gentiles worshipped
At Thy glad Epiphany,
Unto Thee, with God the Father
And the Spirit, glory be.
This hymn is composed of four verses from the Hymn for the Epiphany from Prudentius' (384-413) Cathemerinon, which is 52 stanzas long. In 1568, four short hymns were assembled from selected stanzas from Prudentius' hymn and introduced into the Breviary by Pope Pius V. This hymn is one of them and is used in the Roman Breviary at Lauds on Epiphany.
| O SOLA magnarum urbium maior Bethlehem, cui contigit ducem salutis caelitus incorporatum gignere. | BETHLEHEM! of noblest cities none can once with thee compare; thou alone the Lord from heaven didst for us Incarnate bear. |
| Haec stella, quae solis rotam vincit decore ac lumine, venisse terris nuntiat cum carne terrestri Deum. | Fairer than the sun at morning was the star that told His birth; to the lands their God announcing, hid beneath a form of earth. |
| Videre postquam illum Magi, eoa promunt munera: stratique votis offerunt thus, myrrham, et aurum regium. | By its lambent beauty guided, see the eastern kings appear; see them bend, their gifts to offer- gifts of incense, gold, and myrrh. |
| Regem Deumque annuntiant thesaurus, et fragrans odor thuris Sabaei, ac myrrheus pulvis sepulchrum praedocet. | Solem things of mystic meaning!- Incense doth the God disclose; Gold a royal Child proclaimeth; Myrrh a future tomb foreshows. |
| Iesu, tibi sit gloria, qui apparuisti gentibus, cum Patre, et almo Spiritu, in sempiterna saecula. | Holy Jesu, in Thy brightness to the Gentile world displayed, with the Father and the Spirit, endless praise to Thee be paid. |
From the Roman Breviary. Translation by Fr. Edward Caswall (1814-1878).
Labels: 4th c., epiphany, marcus aurelius clemens prudentius
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
| Words: Unknown author, 11th Century (Alleluia, dulce carmen); translated from Latin to English by John M. Neale, 1851, alt. Music: Tantum Ergo Samuel Webbe, Motetts or Antiphons, 1792 (MIDI, score). If you have access to a picture of Samuel Webbe that we could put online, please click here. |  John M. Neale (1818-1866) |
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1. Alleluia dulce carmen,
Vox perennis gaudii,
Alleluia laus suavis
Est choris coelestibus,
Quam canunt Dei manentes
In domo per saecula.
2. Alleluia laeta mater
Concivis Jerusalem:
Alleluia vox tuorum
Civium gaudentium:
Exsules nos flere cogunt
Babylonis flumina.
3. Alleluia non meremur
In perenne psallere;
Alleluia vo reatus
Cogit intermittere;
Tempus instat quo peracta
Lugeamus crimina.
4. Unde laudando precamur
Te beata Trinitas,
Ut tuum nobis videre
Pascha des in aethere,
Quo tibi laeti canamus
Alleluia perpetim.
Labels: 11th c., epiphany, latin, Neale
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
 William C. Dix (1837-1898) | Words: William C. Dix, 1860. He wrote this hymn on the day of the Epiphany, while sick in bed; it was first published in his Hymns of Love and Joy. Music: Dix, Konrad Kocher, Stimmen aus dem Reiche Gottes, 1838 (MIDI, score). |  Conrad Kocher (1786-1872) |
| As with gladness, men of old Did the guiding star behold As with joy they hailed its light Leading onward, beaming bright So, most glorious Lord, may we Evermore be led to Thee. As with joyful steps they sped To that lowly manger bed There to bend the knee before Him Whom Heaven and earth adore; So may we with willing feet Ever seek Thy mercy seat. As they offered gifts most rare At that manger rude and bare; So may we with holy joy, Pure and free from sin’s alloy, All our costliest treasures bring, Christ, to Thee, our heavenly King. Holy Jesus, every day Keep us in the narrow way; And, when earthly things are past, Bring our ransomed souls at last Where they need no star to guide, Where no clouds Thy glory hide. In the heavenly country bright, Need they no created light; Thou its Light, its Joy, its Crown, Thou its Sun which goes not down; There forever may we sing Alleluias to our King! |
Labels: epiphany
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments
as alt. in The Hymnal 1982.
If you have the original version, please write.
Music: This Endris Nyght
Labels: epiphany
¶ Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0 comments