Auctor Beate Saeculi
1. Jesus, Creator of the world!
Of all mankind Redeemer blest!
True God of God! in Whom we see
The Father's Image clear express'd!
2.Thee, Saviour, love alone constrain'd
To make our mortal flesh Thine own;
And as a second Adam come,
For the first Adam to atone.
3.That selfsame love that made the sky,
Which made the sea, and stars, and earth,
Took pity on our misery,
And broke the bondage of our birth.
4.O Jesu! in Thy Heart divine
May that same love forever glow,
Forever mercy to mankind
From that exhaustless fountain flow.
5.For this Thy Sacred Heart was pierced,
And both with Blood and Water ran;
To cleanse us from the stains of guilt,
And be the hope of strength for man.
6.To God the Father, and the Son,
All priase and pow'r, and glory be;
With Thee, O holy Paraclete,
Henceforth through all eternity.
Click here for the Latin lyrics.
This hymn is part of the Divine Office, prayed publicly or privately by every Catholic Priest, professed religious, and many seminarians. It is part of the canonical hour of Vespers, being the hymn which comes toward the end. This particular Vespers hymn is taken from the Feast of the Sacred Heart. In a seminary or monastery, this hymn would be sung. It has a very compelling melody, which adds to the beauty of a hymn which extolls the mercy of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of the entire piece is Our Lord's Sacred Heart, and how It is the font of mercy for all who come to Him. It tells how we should value the infinite redemption he wrought for us.
The verses of this hymn have many elisions - syllables which are left out. They are marked in these lyrics by parentheses. For instance, in verse 3: "Ill(e) amor almus artifex" has one too many syllables; so you would pronounce it "Ill-amor almus artifex". It is the same as in English poetry, where you might say "eer" instead of "ever", to better fit the rhythm and meter the poem requires.
The recording of this hymn on Chant Compendium 2 turned out particularly well, with a nice organ introduction by the best organist the Seminary has had in a long time.
This is found on the following CD(s):
Chant Compendium 2.
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