2. General Survey
Hymns from the earliest time have been an important element in the services of the sanctuary,
and in all periods have contributed to
the piety of the Church. The Old and
the New
Testament frequently
represent the heavenly bodies and
the
heavenly hosts as praising God (Job asxviii. 7;
Is&. vi. 3;
Rev. v. 9
sqq.), while the best periods of
both Hebrew and Christian history expressed religious fervor in sacred song (cf.
Acts xvi. 25).
In the Greek and Latin churches, from the sixth century on, the singing of hymns was confined to the
churches and convents, and in the churches was
restricted to
the clergy, though in Germany the
congregation sang the Leisen-certain hymns
closing with the Kyrie eleison. The Flagellants of the
thirteenth and fourteenth centuries sang hymns in
the Latin or in the vernacular (see
Flagellation, Flagellants),
while the English Lollards of the
fourteenth century and the Bohemian Hussites of
the fifteenth century revived the popular use of
sacred song. The Reformation re:ntroduoed congregational singing in worship. The English revival
of the . eighteenth century was marked by a great
impulse to the composition of hymns, in which
members of the national church (Toplady, Newton,
and others) vied with the leaders of the Methodist
movement. Hymns "have consoled the sad,
checked the joyful, subdued the enraged, refreshed
the poor" (Nioetius of Treves,
De psalmodid bono).
They have been on the tongues of believers in the
first ardor of their faith, and have ascended as the
last fervid utterance of martyrs at the stake. They
are the common heritage of believers, and bind
together all ages. In them denominational distinctions
are effaced. The hymns of Ambrose,
John of Damascus, Luther, Tersteegen, Wesley,
Toplady, Muhlenberg, and Newman stand side by
side in the hymn-books, consentient in praise of
the one God and in love for the one Savior. For
hymn tunes, see
Music, Sacred;
see the sketches of prominent hymn-writers, etc.
17. Hebrew Hymns: Hebrew psalmody had an
early origin. The songs of Miriam, Moses, Deborah,
and Hannah
(Ex. xv.;
Deut. xxxlii.;
Judges v.;
I Sam. ii. 1-10)
are sacred poems full of sublime
imagery and inspired with a fervid devotion to
Yahweh. The Book of Psalms is the best of hymn-books,
and in all ages of the Christian Church it has
been a living fountain of devotion and praise. See
Psalms, Book of;
Psalmody; and
Hebrew Language and
Literature, III.
III. Early Christian Hymns: From the threshold
of the Christian dispensation have come down
hymns which are known generally by their Latin
titles, usually derived from the first words in the
Latin versions. These are the Magnificat of Mary
(Luke i. 46-55),
the Benedictus of Zacharias
(Luke i. 68-79),
and the Nunc dimitta of Simeon
(Luke ii. 29-32).
Other parts of the New Testament suggest
by their form that they are fragments of hymns
(Acts iv. 24-30;
Eph. v. 14;
I Tim. iii. 16;
James i. 17;
Rev. xv. 3).
At the institution of the Lord's Supper
(Matt. xxvi. 30),
Jesus and his disciples sang a hymn, possibly a part of the
Hallel (cf. C. A. Briggs, Commentary on . . . Psalms,
i., New York, 1906, pp. lxxviii-lxxix). Christians
of the Apostolic Age used hymns as a means of edification
(I Cor. xiv. 26;
Eph. v. 19;
Col. iii. 16):
It seems probable that in the public-assembly the
hymn, like prophecy and preaching, was sometimes
the spontaneous product of the moment
(I Cor. xiv. 26).
From the sub-apostolic age testimony to
the use of hymns in Christian public service comes
from heathen as well as from Christian sources.
Early in the second century Pliny informed Trajan
that the Christians were in the habit of meeting
before daylight and singing songs to Christ as God
(Epist. a. 97). Eusebius (Hist. eccl. V., xxviii. 5)
quotes an author from near the end of the second
century who speaks of the "many psalms and
hymns, written by the faithful brethren from the
beginning, [which] celebrate Christ the Word of God,
speaking of him as divine" (NPNF, 2 ser., i. 247).
The oldest Christian hymn in use, apart from those
mentioned above, is probably "Shepherd of tender
youth," by Clement of Alexandria (c. 200), which
has gained currency in the rendering of Henry M.
Dexter, made in 1846 (of. Schaff, Christian Church,
ii. 228-31). The hymn "Light of gladness, beam
divine," still sung in the Greek Church, was formerly
attributed to Athenagenes (d. 169); but Basil of
Cęsarea (d. 379) denies his authorship, though he
refers to the hymn as an ancient composition: The
Gnostics early created a body of hymns, and Origen
speaks of the large number in use. Bardesanes
(q.v.) and his son, Harmonius, were among the
Gnostic poets (cf. E. Preuschen, Zwei gnostische
Hymnen, Giessen, 1904).
IV. Hymns of the Eastern Church: The custom
of singing hymns was so general and popular in the
third century that one of the charges by the Third
Synod of Antioch (269) against Paul of Samosata
was that he had suppressed hymns in honor of
Christ. Theodoret states (Hist. eccl., ii. 19;
NPNF, 2 ser., iii. 85) that antiphonal singing began in
Antioch and spread thence in all directions in the
fourth century. While Chrysostom was bishop of
Constantinople, the Trinitarian party used to
assemble in the squares and then march in midnight
processions through the city singing sacred songs
as a means of combating the Arians, who also had
their own songs. Cardinal Pitra states that the
number of Greek hymns is very great, sufficient
having been published to fill fifteen or twenty
volumes, while an equal number survive in manuscript
only. Ephraem Syrus (d. about 378) is the
father of Syrian Christian hymnody. Theodoret
speaks in high praise of Ephraem's hymns, which
commemorate the great facts in the life of Jesus,
the deaths of Christians, and the lives of martyrs
(cf. H. Burgess, Select Mehioal Hymns . . . of
Ephraem, London, 1853). Gregory Nazianzen (d.
390) and Anatolius (see
Anatolius of Constantinople)
are the two greatest writers in the earlier
period of Greek hymnody. The hymn "Fierce was
the wild billow" is attributed to the latter. The
best hymns of this branch of the Church were
written in what John Mason Neale calls the second
period, 720-820. To this period are assigned
Romanus (d. about 720), to whom Cardinal Pitra
ascribes twenty-five hymns which exhibit originality
and vigor; Andrew of Crete (d. 732); Comas
(if there be not two writers of this name, cf. DCB,
i. 694-695); John of Damascus, the great theologian
of the Greek Church, whose "'Tis the day of resurrection"
has passed into many English hymnals;
and Stephen of the monastery of Mar Saba (d. 794),
whose "Art thou weary, art thou languid" is the
most simple and restful lyric based on the words of
Jesus, "Come unto me, all ye that labor." Three
later writers are Theodore the Studite (d. 826), who
wrote "That fearful day, that day of dread";
Joseph the Studite (d. about 830), who wrote
"Jesus, Lord of life eternal"; and Theoctistus the
Studite (d. about 890), author of "Jesus, name all
names above."
V. Hymns of the Latin Church:
The Earlier Period
The founders of
Latin hymnology were Hilary of Poitiers (d. 368)
and Ambrose of Milan (d. 397). Hilary
was banished from Gaul to Asia Minor
and so came into contact with the
Eastern Church, and on his return to
his diocese made the book of hymns of which Jerome
makes mention. Daniel gives six hymns as his,
but it is doubtful whether there is a single hymn
by Hilary extant. The singing of hymns was very
popular in Milan, where Ambrose was bishop, and
to him is due the so-called Ambrosian music (see
Ambrosian Chant)
used by the congregation, to
which Augustine gives testimony (
Conf., ix. 7).
Ninety-two hymns are attributed to the
Ambrosian
school, a few of which are by Ambrose himself (see
Ambrose, Saint,
of Milan).
They combine vigor
with simplicity and commemorate the great facts
and doctrines of Christianity. Good specimens are
the
Veni,
Redemptor ("Redeemer of all nations,
come"), and the
Deus Creator ("Maker of all things,
glorious God"). Some of the finest Latin hymns
are by Prudentius, a Spanish layman (d. not earlier
than 405), which, to the number of about fifteen,
are taken from longer poems. Two
much admired, are "Bethlehem, of noblest
cities," on the birth of Christ, and "Hail, infant
martyrs," on the murder of the innocents. In
the fifth century Sedulius, possibly of Rome, and
not to be confused with Sedulius Scotus of the
eighth century, was the composer of some good hymns.
