Dome of Santa Maria Maddalena, Rome - Courtesy of Wikipedia
Spirit of God On the Waste and the Darkness is written by the Benedictine Nuns of Stanbrook Abbey. In the Divine Office (1974) it is one of the hymns selected for use during Eastertide after Ascension Day. It is set to Liebster Immanuel, a melody from the Himmels-Lust of 1679, adapted and harmonized by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). An alternative tune that can also be used is Morning Star, as featured in the following video.
MARY IMMACULATE, STAR OF THE MORNING by F. W. Wetherell (Public Domain)
1. Mary Immaculate, Star of the morning,
Chosen before the creation began,
Chosen to bring, for Thy bridal adorning,
Woe to the serpent and rescue to man.
2. Here in an orbit of shadow and sadness,
Veiling Thy splendor, Thy course Thou hast run;
Now Thou art throned in All glory and gladness,
Crowned by the hand of the Savior and Son.
3. Sinners, we honor Thy sinless perfection;
Fallen and weak, for Thy pity we lead;
Grant us the shield of Thy Sovereign protection,
Measure Thine aid by the depth of our need.
4. Bend from Thy throne At the voice of our crying,
Bend to this earth which Thy footsteps have trod;
Stretch out Thine arms to us, Living and dying,
Mary Immaculate, Mother of God.
