Church Music

This is a song of praise with a liturgically useful trinitarian verse. A c9 latin text Christe cunctorum dominator alme, translated by Maxwell J. Blacker and fiddled with by others, it is set to ISTE CONFESSOR. Let’s hope our voices are “tuneful”. Is “as we throng your temple,” English?

I’ve used the CWB II text.

1 Only-begotten, Word of God eternal,
Lord of creation, merciful and mighty:
hear us, your servants, when our tuneful voices
rise to your presence.

2 Holy this dwelling where the Lord is present;
this is none other than the gate of heaven.
strangers and pilgrims, seeking homes eternal,
pass through its portals.

3 Lord we beseech you, as we throng your temple.
by your past blessings, by your present bounty,
smile on your children, and with tender mercy
hear our petitions.

4 God in three persons, Father everlasting,
Son co-eternal, ever blessed Spirit:
yours be the glory, praises and adoration,
now and forever.

When I blogged this text by William Henry Turton here, I noted three variant titles. Here’s a fourth. I found a fifth with “Christ” for “Lord” as well. That a song praying for Christian unity has been tweaked into so many variants, probably means we should sing this prayer more often.

CWB II sets this to SONG 1 by Orlando Gibbons. This is the modernised variant text from CWBII.

1 O Lord, at your first Eucharist you prayed
that all your Church might be for ever one;
grant us at every Eucharist to say
with longing heart and soul, ‘Your will be done’:
O may we all one bread, one body be
through this blessed sacrament of unity.

2 For all your church, O Lord, we intercede
make all our sad divisions soon to cease:
draw us the nearer each to each, we plead,
by drawing all to you, O Prince of Peace.
Thus may we all one bread, one body be
through this blessed sacrament of unity.

3 We also pray for wand’rers from your fold:
O bring them back, Good Shepherd of the sheep
back to the faith which saints believed of old,
back to the Church which still one faith does keep.
Soon may we all one bread, one body be
through this blessed sacrament of unity.

4 So, Lord, at length when sacraments shall cease,
may we be one with all your Church above;
one with your saints in one unbroken peace,
one with your saints in one unbounded love:
more blessed still, in peace and love to be
one with the Trinity in unity!

A c12 Latin text by St Bernard of Clairvaux and paraphrased by Ray Palmer. I have no Latin but it seems clear that it is not meant to be an actual translation. Even with this version I have found variant texts that do not limit the light of Christ to being “our true light”.

It is set to JESU DULCIS MEMORIA a tune I blogged badly here because BIAB CAN”T DO CHANT.

This site has recordings of the Latin chant and a very different English translation.

This is the text from CWB II.

O Jesus, joy of loving hearts,
the fount of life, and our true light;
we seek the peace your love imparts
and stand rejoicing in your sight.

Your truth unchanged has ever stood;
You save all those who heed your call;
To those who seek you, you are good;
To those who find you, all in all.

We taste you, Lord, our living bread,
and long to feast upon you still;
we drink of you, the fountainhead;
our thirsting souls to quench and fill.

For you our restless spirits yearn,
until your face we see at last;
glad, when your presence we discern,
blest, when our faith can hold you fast.

O Jesus, ever with us stay!
Make all our moments calm and bright!
O, cast the night of sin away!
Shed on the world your holy light.

This version in English is from OCP and it seems a bit hurried, with insufficient gaps between lines to catch your breath.

This is more singable:

I’m having a break in Tasmania, but I’ll post occasionally while here.

In my seemingly never ending survey of Catholic Worship Book II, I am skipping songs I have already looked at, which have often been from the more recent repertoire (1980s and onwards – AOV etc). This means the songs that are new to me fit under the category of more traditional hymnody. Often in CWB II there are fairly recent texts to old tunes, as with this hymn by Jane Parker Huber set to LEONI, a c18 Hebrew synagogue tune.

Some of the texts I’m finding seem obvious and banal, but perhaps rescued in the singing. This one though, has enough sparkle in the words alone to be worth mention and the gall to rhyme “prod” and “God”!

The text is here.

I got the chords from TIS to make a backing.

I’m back in Catholic Worship Book II, for this gathering song by Anthony Nye.

The text is here and I suspect it sings better than it reads. It is set to CRUGER.

CWB II sets it in Eb , which is more singable than this:

This is a song based on Psalm 118 by Ed Bolduc from Voices As One 2. The refrain is call and response and the verses are for a cantor who can hit an F. The tune is quite lively and lovely.

This sheet music can be purchased at WLP and the text is their sample.

Entrance: A New Heart for a New World  (O’Brien/Watts) AOV 1/158

Psalm 89 (McKenna)

In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

Gifts: Open My Eyes  (Manibusan) AOV 1/166

Communion: Gift of Finest Wheat (Westendorf/Kreutz) CWB II 651

Thanksgiving: You Are Mine  (Haas)  AOV 2/2

Recessional: Christ Be Our Light  (Farrell) AOV 2/3

We are trying out “Gift of Finest Wheat”, which hasn’t been used at our parish before.

Entrance: City of God  (Schutte) AOV 1/57

Psalm 137 (McKenna)

Lord, on the day I called for help, you have answered me.

Gifts: A Trusting Psalm  (Bates) AOV 1/115

Communion: Gift of Finest Wheat (Westendorf/Kreutz) CWB II 651

Thanksgiving: River of Glory  (Schutte)

Recessional: Sing to the Mountains  (Dufford) AOV 1/92

Entrance: A Place at the Table (Shirley Erena Murray – Lori True) AOV NG 1

Psalm 14 (McKenna)

The just will live in the presence of the Lord.

Gifts: Blessed be Our God  (McKenna) AOV NG 13

Communion: Bread Broken, Wine Shared Bread  (Horner) AOV 2/155

Thanksgiving: Servant Song  (Gillard) AOV 2/169

Recessional: God of Day and God of Darkness  (Haugen) AOV 1/56

For a change from the traditional styles I have doing in CWB II, I have switched back to WLP’s Voices As One Vol 2 and I think I was up to this song, with the refrain being Psalm 25 and the verses adapted by, and music written by Paul L. Berrell.

The text is in this sample from WLP but don’t go looking for him there. As far as I can tell he remains in jail for sex offences and his existence is largely wiped from WLP’s site. If for some reason you have the book already and want to use it I made a backing.

You can see a version on YouTube here.