Our office hymn for Evensong and songs from Mass earlier

Our English version, according to the Ancient Office Hymnbook compiled by Bishop Peter Wilkinson, OSG, goes like this:

Creator of the stars of night
Thy people's everlasting light,
Jesu, Redeemer, save us all,
And hear Thy servants when they call.

Thou, grieving that the ancient curse
Should doom to death an universe
Hast found the med'cine full of grace,
To save and heal a ruin'd race.

Thou cam'st, the Bridegroom of the Bride,
As drew the world to evening-tide;
Proceeding from a virgin shrine,
The spotless Victim all divine.

At whose dread Name, majestic now,
All knees must bend, all hearts must bow;
All things celestial Thee shall own,
And things terrestrial, Lord alone.

O Thou, whose coming is with dread
To judge and doom the quick and dead,
Preserve us, while we dwell below,
From every insult of the foe.

To God the Father, God the son,
And God the Spirit, Three in One,
Laud, honour, might and glory be,
From age to age eternally. Amen.

(J.M. Neale, translator)

Ah, how I love the season of Advent. Especially the way we do it in our little church.

Today we sang "Thy kingdom come---on bended knee

"Thy kingdom come!" on bended knee
the passing ages pray;
and faithful souls have yearned to see
on earth that kingdom's day.

But the slow watches of the night
not less to God belong;
and for the everlasting right
the silent stars are strong.

And lo, already on the hills
the flags of dawn appear;
gird up your loins, ye prophet souls,
proclaim the day is near:

The day to whose clear shining light
all wrong shall stand revealed,
when justice shall be throned in might,
and every heart be healed;

When knowledge, hand in hand with peace,
shall walk the earth abroad;
the day of perfect righteousness,
the promised day of God.


And Fr. Deacon Michael played this on the organ:




And told me Jars of Clay did a decent contemporary rendition of this Basque carol.