Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Tuesday Office of Readings Even Week noctu

mp3

Nocte surgéntes vigilémus omnes,
Rising by night, let us all keep watch
semper in psalmis meditémur atque
and ever devote our minds to psalmody
víribus totis Dómino canámus Update: Thanks Figulus!
and with all our strength let us sing to the Lord
dúlciter hymnos,
sweet hymns,

Now from the slumbers of the night arising,
chant we the holy psalmody of David,
hymns to our Master, with a voice concordant,
sweetly intoning.

Ut, pio regi páriter canéntes,
That singing to the loving King,
cum suis sanctis mereámur aulam
together with His Saints, we may merit
íngredi cæli, simul et beátam
to enter the royal court of heaven, and with them (at the same time)
dúcere vitam.
to lead a blessed life

So may our Monarch pitifully hear us,
that we may merit with His Saints to enter
mansions eternal, there withal possessing
joy beatific.

Præstet hoc nobis Déitas beáta
May He grant us this, the blessed Deity
Patris ac Nati, paritérque Sancti
of the Father, Son and likewise of the Holy
Spíritus, cuius résonat per omnem
Spirit, whose glory resounds throughout
glória mundum. Amen.
the whole world.

This be our portion, God forever blessed,
Father eternal, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Whose is the glory, which through all creation
ever resoundeth. Amen.

Lentini's title: Let us keep vigil (now) in song to sing then in heaven

I pretty much just copied Britt's translation today(hymn number 7 in his book). I guess going to the beach with the kids made me feel all lazy and relaxed.

Not much to say about this Sapphic-and-Adonic-metered hymn. Britt says it's by Gregory the Great, while Lentini says "Author unknown, Carolingian Age, 8th-9th century." (I lean toward Lentini.) Britt says that Nocte Surgentes (today's hymn) is the "companion hymn" to Ecce iam noctis, the hymn for morning prayer on Even Sundays. My post for that hymn has more about the "Sapphic and Adonic" meter as well, so check it out if you missed that one.

2 comments:

Figulus said...

"viribus totis Domino canamus"

Let us sing to the Lord with all [our] strength. "With all men" would be "viris totis".

Geometricus said...

Thanks, Figulus. That part I could not copy from Britt(because Lentini had restored it for the modern Liber Hymnarius...in the Roman Breviary it read "voce concordi Domino canamus"), so that was one of the few places I translated myself. I had a feeling it was wrong, but my sun-addled brain didn't think to hard about it.

I am happy for the correction! (Happy that someone is reading the blog, too!)