Hymns
Posts in Comfortable Words tagged ‘Hymns’
A morning hymn attributed to the fifth-century Irish bishop, St Patrick.
This morning hymn is attributed to St Patrick, the fifth-century priest (possibly born in Cumbria) who swore a vow to bring Christianity to Ireland, where he had been enslaved as a child. It is described as a ‘lorica’, a breastplate, presumably in reference to the breastplate of righteousness of which St Paul wrote to the Ephesians.
A hymn of praise and thanksgiving, recalling the birth of Jesus Christ, and the promise of eternal life.
This hymn, often known by its Latin title of ‘Te Deum’, is attributed to St Nicetas (?335-414), bishop of Remesiana, now Bela Palanka in the Pirot District of Serbia. Today it forms part of the litany. The translation given here comes from the English Book of Common Prayer (1662).
A prayer that has been sung daily at Mattins since the fourth century.
This prayer, which comes from the Eastern churches, became part of daily Matins in the fourth century. The text given here is based on the Book of Common Prayer of 1549, a translation from the Latin of St Hilary of Poitiers (?300-368). Hilary spent time in the East in 359-360, and may have come across the prayer then. The Latin differs slightly from the Greek, but the differences are not particularly significant.
A deep and mysterious poem from the fourth century, describing what cannot be seen at the communion service.
This ancient hymn, sung in place of the Cherubic Hymn on certain days of the year, sets out to remind us of what cannot be seen during the communion service, as heaven’s glory spills over into our world, and Jesus Christ comes with his angel host.