Praise to Mary, Heaven's Gate / Ave Maris Stella

Mother of Our Lord and King

Praise to Mary, Heaven's Gate is a 1965 Rev. Michael M. Quinn O.P. translation of the 9th. century anonymous Latin hymn, Ave Maris Stella (see 2nd video). From earliest times it was used in the Roman Breviary at Vespers on Marian Feast Days. Fr. Quinn's text is set to the tune, Gott Sei Dank (Lubeck) by the Lutheran Pastor and Theologian, Johann Anastasius Freylinghausen (1670-1739). His Geistreiches Gesangsbuch of 1704 (also known as Freylinghausen's Songbook), in which Gott Sei Dank was first published, is considered an importatant advancement in the development and organization of hymnals. In the Liturgy of the Hours, Praise to May, Heaven's Gate is used in the Commons of the Blessed Virgin Mary and on the Feast of the Assumption.

Tune: Lubeck

AVE MARIS STELLA (Public Domain)

1. Ave maris stella,
Dei Mater alma,
atque semper Virgo,
felix caeli porta.

2. Sumens illud Ave
Gabrielis ore,
funda nos in pace,
mutans Hevae nomen.

3. Solve vincula reis,
profer lumen caecis
mala nostra pelle,
bona cuncta posce.

4. Monstra te esse matrem:
sumat per te preces,
qui pro nobis natus,
tulit esse tuus.

5. Virgo singularis,
inter omnes mites,
nos culpis solutos,
mites fac et castos.

6. Vitam praesta puram,
iter para tutum:
ut videntes Iesum
semper collaetemur.

7. Sit laus Deo Patri,
summo Christo decus,
Spiritui Sancto,
tribus honor unus. Amen.

Gregorian (Sung by the Daughters of St. Paul)

O Christ, You Are the Light and Day / Christe Qui Lux Es Et Dies

A Quiet Night to Rest in You.

O Christ, You Are the Light and Day is a 1965 translation by the Reverend Michael M. Quinn, O.P. of Christe qui Lux es et Dies (see 2nd video), an ancient latin hymn used for Compline during Lent. It is set to the tune, Saint Anne written in 1708 by William Croft (1678-1727). Both JS Bach and GF Handel used it in their compositions. The melody is best known as the setting the Isaac Watts hymn: Our God, Our Help in Ages Past. In the Liturgy of the Hours, O Christ, You Are the Light and Day is used during Ordinary Time for Evening Prayer.


Tune: St. Anne

CHRISTE QUI LUX ES ET DIES  (Public Domain)

1. Christe qui lux es et dies,
Noctis tenebras detegis,
Lucisque lumen crederis,
Lumen beatum praedicans.

2. Precamur Sancte Domine,
Defende nos in hac nocte,
Sit nobis in te requies,
Quietam noctem tribue.

3. Ne gravis somnus irruat,
Nec hostis nos surripiat,
Nec caro illi consentiens,
Nos tibi reos statuat.

4. Oculi somnum capiant,
Cor ad te semper vigilet,
Dextera tua protegat
Famulos qui te diligunt.

5. Defensor noster aspice,
Insidiantes reprime,
Guberna tuos famulos,
Quos sanguine mercatus es.

6. Memento nostri Domine
In gravi isto corpore,
Qui es defensor animae,
Adesto nobis Domine.

 7. Deo Patri sit gloria,
Eiusque soli Filio,
Cum Spiritu Paraclito,
Et nunc et in perpetuum. Amen.


Traditional Chant