Thee we adore, O hidden Savior, Thee,Who in Thy Sacrament art pleased to be;
Both flesh and spirit in Thy presence fail,
Yet here Thy presence we devoutly hail.
Fountain of goodness, Jesus, Lord and God:
Cleanse us, unclean, with Thy most precious blood;
Increase our faith and love, that we may know
The hope and peace which from Thy presence flow.
O Christ, whom now beneath a veil we see,
May what we thirst for soon our portion be:
To gaze on Thee unveiled and see Thy face,
The vision of Thy glory, and Thy grace. Amen.
LSB 640:1,4,5
A magnificent hymn indeed - a gift of a certain "dumb ox" to the Church! We sang it last Sunday. The imagery in the third stanza concerning the symbolic legend of the mother pelican inspired the State flag of Louisiana.
ReplyDeleteThe plainsong is admittedly difficult for people who haven't studied music. One of our members complained about it, and I assured her it was only because we haven't learned it yet. She said, "Pastor, we'll *never* learn that one." I replied, "But Xxxxxx, we've been singing it for 800 years!"
It will be easier next year as our school has just "called" a music teacher - an extremely bright young woman who appreciates ther liturgical heritage of the Church. She will be rebuilding our choirs.
What a blessing to have in our hymnal an ancient chant of St. Thomas Aquinas that is reflected in our ubiquitous State flag (I understand the ACLU has now noticed the Christian symbolism in our flag and plans on pressuring the State to get rid of it).
I think that "bright young woman" you refer to Father is a friend of mine from Seward. Not only does she appreciate the liturgical heritage of the church, she also has quite a voice.... and if may say so... is hilarious! Have fun!
ReplyDeleteSam
May God bless her work among you!
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