Liturgical poetry cycle complete

With my last post, the series of poems beginning with "Kyrie Eleison" is complete. These poems are built around the text of the Ordinary of the Mass in English translation. The translation used is that found in the Order of Communion in the Book of Common Prayer. The poems were written and posted in the order in which they are found in the Anglican Prayerbook, with the Great Doxology at the end rather than before the Credo as it stands in Roman Catholic liturgy. The construction of the poems and the manner in which the liturgical text is incorporated varies. In some the liturgical words are made part of the regular meter and rhyme pattern. In others they were placed as extra-metrical refrains between stanzas of the poems. In the last, the Latin text of the first two lines is also included at the end.

Here are direct links to each poem in the cycle in their order:

Kyrie Eleison: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/kyrie-eliason.html
Credo: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/credo.html
Sanctus: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/sanctus.html
Benedictus: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/benedictus.html
Agnus Dei: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/agnus-dei.html
Gloria in Excelsis: http://thronealtarliberty.blogspot.com/2010/12/gloria-in-excelsis.html

My inspiration for this project is musical. After attending the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's marvelous performance of Beethoven's Mass in C-Major on December 4th I spent much of early December listening to recordings of other masses - the Missa Solemnis, Hadyn's "Nelson" Mass, Mozart's "Coronation" Mass, and especially J. S. Bach's Mass in B Minor. The latter is rapidly approaching the great oratarios - Haydn's "Creation", Bach's "St. Matthew's Passion" and Handel's "Messiah" at the top of my list of favorite sacred music. At any rate, listening to these hymns which the Christian Church has been singing for centuries set to the accompaniment of music by the greatest composers the world has ever known (or ever will know), inspired me to take these hymns, in the form in which I knew them the best, and set them in poetic verse with whatever little talent in so doing I may possess.

Gloria in Excelsis

When Christ the Son of God Most High was born
His Angel to the shepherds did appear
And in the night before the light of morn
Proclaimed to them Good News the King is near.

Glory be to God on High,
And in earth peace, good will towards men.

These words of praise to God and peace to man
The Angel and heavenly choir did sing.
Since then throughout the world in every land
Where Christ’s Church is found, on tongues they still ring.

We praise Thee, we bless Thee
We worship Thee, we glorify Thee.

In praise to God saved men with angels join
And earth and heaven become as if one
And share that which cannot be bought with coin
The favour of God and His Only Son.

We give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory,
O Lord God, Heavenly King, God the Father Almighty.

In Christ, the Son, the Father is revealed,
In human flesh to man God is made known
By Him Who was worthy to take the sealed
Scroll from Him who sits on th’heavenly throne.

O Lord, the Only-Begotten Son, Jesu Christ
O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father
That takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us.

Why was Christ the only One found worthy
Of all in heaven, on earth or below?
With His blood for God He purchased earthy
People back from sin and death, hell and woe.

Thou that takest away the sin of the world
Receive our prayer.

The huge breach made by sin when Adam fell
Between the grievéd God and fallen man
Christ’s death removed – and removed it so well
Howe’er hard they search, find it no one can.

Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father
Have mercy upon us.

The glory of the Father the Son shares
With no one else except the Holy Ghost;
He takes upon Himself the world’s cares
And saves from sin unto the uttermost.

For Thou only art holy,
Thou only art the Lord;

The Church of Christ established on the earth
Against it, hell’s gates never shall prevail
Thee, O Christ, Who art of infinite worth
Thy Father and the Spirit, we do hail.

Thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost,
Art most high in the glory of God the Father.

And so to Thee O holy Three-in-One
We lift our voices and sing out Thy praise
And worship Thee whose light outshines the sun
Whose reign will last beyond the end of days.

Gloria in excelsis Deo
et in terra pax hoiínibus bonae voluntatis

Amen.