Easter Sunday
Categories: hymns, feast-days
Date: 23 March 2008 02:10:33
More beautiful photos of Duccio's Maestà can be found at the Web Gallery of Art's pages on it.
I went to St Benedict's, Broadway today for their Easter Day Mass: and it was so very beautiful. I find the Roman Mass very moving, particularly when accompanied by fine singing and organ playing as it was today. The painting shown on the left was on the front cover of the Mass booklet
Among the many beautiful hymns and anthems was the plainsong sequence for Easter, Victimae paschali laudes: this was new to me. The translation, thanks to ChoralWiki, is:
To the Paschal victim let Christians
Offer up their songs of praise.
The Lamb has redeemed the sheep:
Christ who is without sin
Has reconciled sinners to the Father.
Death and life have fought a huge battle,
The Prince of Life was dead, but lives and reigns.
Tell us, Mary, what did you see on your way?
'The tomb of Christ, who is alive,
And I saw the glory of his rising;
Angels standing as witnesses, the shroud and linen cloth.
Christ my hope has risen:
He has gone to Galilee before you.'
Truly, we know Christ has risen from the dead:
O King and victor, have mercy on us. Amen. Alleluia
A blessed and joyous Easter to all celebrating Christ's Resurrection this day!