The great doxology (hymnus
angelicus) in the Mass is a version of a very old Greek form". It
begins with the words sung by the angels at Christ's birth (Luke 2:14).
To this verse others were added very early, forming a doxology. In a
slightly different form it occurs at the beginning of a "morning prayer
(proseuche eothine)" in the "Apostolic Constitutions", VII, xlvii. This
text, which has a subordination colouring (su monos kyrios Iesou
Christou), will be found in Duchesne, "Origines du Culte chretien" (2nd
ed., Paris, 1898, p.158, n.I). It goes back at least to the third
century; Probst (Lehre und Gebet der drei ersten christl.
Jahrhunderte", Tübingen, 1870, p.290) thinks even to the first. A very
similarform is found in the Codex Alexandrinus (fifth century) and in
Pseudo-Athanasius, "de Virginitate", §20 (before the fourth century),
in P.G. XXVIII, 275. Extended further and with every trace of
subordinationism corrected, it is sung by the Byzantine Church at the
Orthros. In this form it has more verses than in the Latin, and ends
with the Trisagion (horologion to mega, Rome, 1876, p.57). It is not
used in the Liturgy by any Eastern Church. Only the first clause (the
text of Luke ii, 14) occurs as part of the people's answer to the
words, "Holy things for the holy", at the elevation in the Liturgy of
the Apostolic Constitutions (Brightman, Eastern Liturgies, Oxford,
1896, p. 25), as part of the Offertory and Communion prayers in St.
James's Liturgy (ibid., pp. 45, 64), at the kiss of peace in the
Abyssinian Rite (p. 227), in the Nestorian Prothesis (p. 248) and again
at the beginning of their Liturgy (p. 252), in the Byzantine Prothesis
(p. 361). The tradition is that it was translated into Latin by St.
Hilary of Poitiers (d. 366). It is quite possible that he learned it
during his exile in the East (360) and brought back a version of it
with him (so Belethus, "Rationale divinorum officiorum", c. 36; Duandus
"Rationale", IV, 13, who thinks that he only added from "Laudamus te"
to theMass, and notes that Innocent III attributes it to Telesphorus,
others to Symmachus). In any case, the Latin version differs from the
present Greek form. They correspond down to the end of the Latin, which
however adds: "Tu solus altissimus" and "Cum sancto Spiritu". The Greek
then goes on: "Every day I will bless thee and will glorify thy name
for ever, and for ever and ever" and continues with ten more verses,
chiefly from psalms, to the Trisagion and Gloria Patri.
The "Liber pontificalis"
says "Pope Telesphorus [128-139?] ordered that . . . on the Birth of
the Lord Masses should be said at night . . . and that the angelic
hymn, that is Gloria in Excelsis Deo, should be said before the
sacrifice" (ed. Duchesne, I, 129); also "that Pope Symmachus [498-514]
ordered that the hymn, Gloria in excelsis, should be said every Sunday
and on the feasts [natalicia] of martyrs." The Gloria is to be said in
its present place, after the "Introit" and "Kyrie", but only by bishops
(ibid., 263). We see it then introduced first for Christmas, on the
feast to which it specially belongs, then extended to Sundays and
certain great feasts, but only for bishops. The "Ordo Romanus I" says
that when the Kyrie is finished "the pontiff, turning towards the
people, begins Gloria in Excelsis, if it be the occasion for it [si
tempus fuerit]" and notes specially that priests may say it only at
Easter (ed. C. Atchley, London, 1905, pp.130, 148). The "Ordo of St.
Amand" (Duchesne, "Origines", appendix, p. 460) gives them leave to do
so only on Easter Eve and on the day of their ordination. The Gregorian
Sacramentary (dicitur Gloria in excelsis Deo, si episcopus fuerit,
tantummodo die dominico sive diebus festis; a presbyteris autem minime
dicitur nisi solo in Pascha) and Walafrid Strabo, "Liber de exordiis",
c.22, in P.L., CXIV, 945, note the same thing. Berno of Constance
thinks it a grievance still in the eleventh century (Libellus de
quibusdam rebus ad Missæ officium pertinentibus, c.2, in P.L., CXLII,
1059). But towards the end of the same century the Gloria was said by
priests as well as by bishops. The "Micrologus" (by the same Berno of
Constance, 1048) tells us that "On every feast that has a full office,
except in Advent and Septuagesima, and on the feast of the Innocents
both the priests and the bishop say Gloria in excelsis (c. ii). It then
became, as it is now, an element of every Mass except in times of
penance. Even in Advent, until it began to be considered such a time,
it was said. As early as Amalarius of Metz (ninth century) (De officiis
eccl. libri IV, IV, 30), it was said during Advent "in some places".
This would apply, of course, to bishops' Masses on Sundays and feasts
at that time. So also Honorius of Autun (1145) in the twelfth century,
"Gemma animæ", III, 1. White vestments were used, and the Gloria said,
in Rome during Advent to the end of the twelfth century, "Ordo Romanus
XI", 4. After that, Advent was gradually considered a time of penance
in imitation of Lent. The Te Deum and Gloria were left out during it,
and the use of purple vestments introduced.
The so-called farced
Glorias were a medieval development. As in the case of the Kyrie,
verses were introduced into its text for special occasions. Such
expanded forms were very popular, especially one for feasts of the
Blessed Virgin that seems to have been used all over Europe. Thus in
the Sarum Missal, after the words "Domine Fili unigenite, Jesu
Christe", "Spiritus et alme orphanorum paraclyte" is added; after
"Filius Patria" is inserted "Primogenitus Mariæ virginis matris".
Again: "Suscipe deprecationem nostram, ad Mariæ gloriam", and the end:
"Quoniam tu solus sanctus, Mariam sanctificans, Tu solus Dominus,
Mariam gubernans. Tu solus altissimus, Mariam coronans, Jesu Christe"
(ed. Burntisland, 1861-1883, col. 585-6). The following rubric says:
"In omnibus aliis missis quando dicendum est, dicitur sine prosa"; that
is, in other Masses than those of the B.V.M., the additional tropes --
called prosa -- are to be omitted. These tropes added to liturgical
texts ad libitum were contained in special books, "Libri troparii". In
spite of repeated commands to expunge them, they were still sung in
places when the Missal was revised by order of Pius V in 1570. In the
Bull "Quo primum" of that year (printed at the beginning of the Missal)
the pope forbids anything to be added to, or changed in, the text of
the books then published. The popularity of the forms about the Blessed
Virgin accounts for the rubric in the Missal after the Gloria: "Sic
dicitur Gloria in excelsis, etiam in missis B. Mariæ quando dicendum
est." Since then these "farced" forms have happily disappeared. It may
be noted here that the Gloria, originally foreign to the Milanese and
Mozarabic RiteRites, has displaced the older Trisagion in them since
the seventh century -- an obvious Roman importation (Duchesne, op.
cit., p.183 and note).
The present law about the
use of the Gloria is given by the "Rubricæ generales" of the Missal,
VIII, 3. It is to be said in Mass whenever the Te Deum is said at
Matins -- with two exceptions. It is therefore omitted on ferias
(except in Easter-tide), Ember days, vigils, during Advent, and from
Septuagesima till Easter, when the Mass is de tempore. The feast of
Holy Innocents, but not its octave, is kept with purple vestments and
without the Te Deum or Gloria. We have seen this already in the
"Micrologus" above). Nor is the Gloria said at Requiem or votive
Masses, with three exceptions: votive Masses of the Blessed Virgin on
Saturdays, of Angels, and those said "pro re gravi" or for a public
cause of the Church, unless with purple vestments, have the Gloria. The
two cases in which it occurs without the Te Deum in the Office are
Maunday Thursday (when the whole Mass is an exception in Passion-tide
and has no correspondence with the canonical hours) and Holy Saturday
in the first Easter Mass. The Gloria always involves "Ite missa est" at
the end of Mass. When it is not said that versicle is changed to
"Benedicamus Domino" or, in Requiems, to "Requiescant in pace."
The manner of saying it is
described in the "Ritus celebrandi Missam", IV, 7. In the "Ordo Romanus
I" (above) the celebrant turns to the people to say the first words.
That is no longer observed. At high Mass as soon as the Kyrie is
finished the celebrant facing the altar in the middle, intones: "Gloria
in excelsis Deo", raising, joining, and lowering his hands and bowing
his head at the word Deo. Meanwhile the deacon and subdeacon stand
behind him in line. They then come to his right and left and with him
continue the Gloria in a low voice. All bow at the holy name (it occurs
twice) and at the words: "Adoramus te", "Gratias agimus tibi", "Suscipe
deprecationem nostram" and make the sign of the cross at the last
clause. They then go per viam breviorem (genuflecting first, according
to the usual rule) to the sedilia and sit. Meanwhile the choir
immediately continues: "Et in terra pax", and sings the text straight
through. In the former Missal four chants were printed for the
celebrant's intonation (for Doubles, Masses of B.V.M., Sundays, and
Simples). This intonation ought to be in every way part -- the
beginning -- of the melody continued by the choir; so in the new
("Vatican") edition of the missal, eighteen alternative chants are
given, one for each Gloria in the Gradual. Obviously, when a plain-song
Mass is sung, the celebrant should intone the Gloria to the same chant
(and at the same pitch) as its continuation by the choir. The ideal is
for the choir to go on at once without any sort of prelude by the
organ; "Et in terra pax" etc. is the second half of the same sentence
as "Gloria in excelsis Deo". In a figured Mass so exact a
correspondence is not possible. But in any case the choir may never
repeat the celebrant's words. Every Gloria in a figured Mass must
begin: "Et in terra pax". The custom -- once very common -- of ignoring
the celebrant and beginning again "Gloria in excelsis" is an
unpardonable abomination that should be put down without mercy, if it
still exists anywhere. While the Gloria is sung, the celebrant,
ministers, and servers bow (or uncover) at the holy name and the other
clauses, as above. During the last clause the celebrant and ministers
rise and go to the altar per viam longiorem (genuflecting at the foot,
according to rule) and go to their places for the "Dominus vobiscum
before the Collect. At a sung Mass the same order is observed by the
celebrant alone. At low Mass he recites the Gloria straight through
clara voce, making the sign of the cross during the last clause (In
gloria Dei Patris. Amen).
Mystic and edifying
reflections on the Gloria will be found in Durandus and Gihr (see
below). Durandus sees much symbolism in the fact that the Church (that
is, men) continues the angels' hymn. By the birth of Christ who
restores all things in heaven and on earth (Ephesians 1:10), angels and
men, separated by original sin, are now reconciled; men may now hope
some day to join in the angels' hymns. Gihr gives a devotional
commentary on the text, word for word. He sees a mystic reason for the
order of the words: Laudamus, benedicimus, adoramus, glorificamus. One
may be edified by such considerations without attributing so much
sublety to the unknown subordinationist who apparently first arranged
them. It will be noticed that the Gloria is a hymn of praise addressed
to each Person of the Holy Trinity in turn, although the clause about
the Holy Ghost is very short (cum sancto Spiritu) and is evidently an
afterthought. It does not occur in the text of the Apostolic
Constitutions. It will also be seen that the clauses are arranged in
parallels with a certain loose rhythm. This rhythm is much more evident
in the Greek original (measured of course by accent); for instance:
Kyrie basileu epouranie,
Thee pater pantokrator
Lastly, it would be
difficult to find in any Liturgy a more beautiful example of poetry
than our hymnus angelicus. The Gloria and the Te Deum are the only
remains we now have of the psalmi idiotici (psalms composed by private
persons instead of being taken from the Biblical Psalter) that were so
popular in the second and third centuries. These private psalms easily
became organs for heretical ideas, and so fell into disfavour by the
fourth century (Batiffol, "Histoire du Bréviaire romain", Paris, 1895,
9-12). The extraodinary beauty of these two (to which one should add
the phos hilaron) is a witness to the splendour of that outburst of
lyric poetry among Christians during the time of persecution.
Publication information
Written by Adrian Fortescue. Transcribed by Tony de Melo.
The Catholic Encyclopedia,
Volume VI. Published 1909. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Nihil
Obstat, September 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor. Imprimatur. +John M.
Farley, Archbishop of New York
Bibliography
For texts and variations of
the Gloria see BUNSEN, "Analecta ante-nicæna" (London, 1854), III;
PROBST, "Lehre u. Gebet, "p.289; WARREN, "The Liturgy and Ritual of the
Celtic Church" (Oxford, 1881); "The Mass of Flacius Illyricus" in P.L.
CXXXVIII,1314; DURANDUS, "Rationale divinorum officiorum "IV, 13; BONA,
"Rerum liturgicarum libri duo", II, 2; BENEDICT XIV, "De SS. sacrificio
Missæ", II, iv, 9-17; DUCHESNE, "Origines du culte chretien" (2nd ed.,
Paris, 1898), 158; GIHR, "Das heilige Messopfer" (6th ed., Freiburg im
Br., 1897), 361-374; CABROL "Le livre de la priere antique "(Paris,
1900), IX, 150-156; DE HERDT, "Sacræ Liturgiæ praxis" (9th ed.,
Louvain, 1894). §§211, 314; THALHOFER, "Handbuch der kath. Liturgik"
(Freiburg im Br., 1890), I, 361 sqq.
