9th-century Latin Christian hymn about the Holy Spirit
Veni Creator Spiritus
(Latin: Come, Creator Spirit) is a traditional
Christian
hymn
believed to have been written by
Rabanus Maurus
, a ninth-century German monk, teacher, archbishop, and saint. When the original
Latin
text is used, it is normally sung to a
Gregorian Chant
tune first known from
Kempten Abbey
around the year 1000. The hymn has been translated and paraphrased into several languages, and adapted into many musical forms, often as a
hymn for Pentecost
or for other occasions that focus on the
Holy Spirit
.
Liturgical use
[
edit
]
As an invocation of the Holy Spirit,
Veni Creator Spiritus
is sung in the
Catholic Church
during liturgical celebrations on the feast of
Pentecost
, at both
Terce
and
Vespers
. It is also sung at occasions such as the
College of Cardinals
entering the
Sistine Chapel
during a
papal conclave
, the
consecration
of
bishops
, the
ordination
of
priests
, the
profession
of members of
religious institutes
, administering the
sacrament
of
Confirmation
, the
dedication of churches
, the convening of
synods
or councils, the
coronation
of monarchs, the
Red Mass
starting the judicial year, and the beginning of other similar solemn events. It is also traditional to chant the hymn on
New Year's Day
to obtain a plenary
indulgence
.
Martin Luther
used the hymn as the basis for his Pentecost
chorale
"
Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist
", first published in 1524.
Veni Creator Spiritus
is also widely used in
Anglican
liturgies, where it has appeared since the publication of the
1550 ordinal
and continues to appear, for example, in the
ordinal
of the
1662
Book of Common Prayer
, and in the Novena to The Holy Ghost in
Saint Augustine's Prayer Book
, published in 1947.
[1]
The translation "Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire" was by Bishop
John Cosin
in 1625, and has since been sung at all subsequent
British coronations
. Another English example is "Creator Spirit, by whose aid", written in 1690 by
John Dryden
and published in
The Church Hymn Book
(1872, n. 313).
[2]
Text
[
edit
]
Several variations of the lyrics exist. Below are the original ninth-century text and a classicizing revision published in 1632 under
Pope Urban VIII
. The former is used in some Protestant churches and certain Catholic religious orders, while the latter is used in most
secular
Catholic parishes.
[
citation needed
]
A versified English translation follows.
Original text
[3]
Veni Creator Spiritus,
Mentes tuorum visita,
Imple superna gratia,
Quae tu creasti pectora.
Qui Paraclitus diceris,
Donum Dei altissimi
Fons vivus, ignis, caritas,
Et spiritalis unctio.
Tu septiformis munere,
Dexterae Dei tu digitus,
Tu rite promissum Patris,
Sermone ditans guttura.
Accende lumen sensibus:
Infunde amorem cordibus:
Infirma nostri corporis
Virtute firmans perpeti.
Hostem repellas longius,
Pacemque dones protinus:
Ductore sic te praevio,
Vitemus omne noxium.
Per te sciamus da Patrem,
Noscamus atque Filium;
Te utriusque Spiritum
Credamus omni tempore.
Gloria Patri Domino,
Natoque qui a mortuis
Surrexit, ac Paraclito,
In saeculorum saecula. Amen.
1632 revision
[3]
Veni Creator Spiritus,
Mentes tuorum visita,
Imple superna gratia,
Quae tu creasti pectora.
Qui diceris Paraclitus,
Altissimi donum Dei,
Fons vivus, ignis, caritas,
Et spiritalis unctio.
Tu septiformis munere,
Digitus Paternae dexterae,
Tu rite promissum Patris,
Sermone ditans guttura.
Accende lumen sensibus:
Infunde amorem cordibus:
Infirma nostri corporis
Virtute firmans perpeti.
Hostem repellas longius,
Pacemque dones protinus:
Ductore sic te praevio,
Vitemus omne noxium.
Per te sciamus da Patrem,
Noscamus atque Filium;
Teque utriusque Spiritum
Credamus omni tempore.
Deo Patri sit gloria,
Et Filio qui a mortuis
Surrexit, ac Paraclito,
In saeculorum saecula. Amen.
English translation
[4]
Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest,
Vouchsafe within our souls to rest;
Come with Thy grace and heav'nly aid
And fill the hearts which Thou hast made.
To Thee, the Comforter, we cry,
To Thee, the Gift of God Most High,
The Fount of life, the Fire of love,
The soul's Anointing from above.
The sev'n-fold gifts of grace are Thine,
O Finger of the Hand Divine;
True Promise of the Father Thou,
Who dost the tongue with speech endow.
Thy light to every thought impart
And shed Thy love in every heart;
The weakness of our mortal state
With deathless might invigorate.
Drive far away our wily Foe,
And Thine abiding peace bestow;
If Thou be our protecting Guide,
No evil can our steps betide.
Make Thou to us the Father known;
Teach us the eternal Son to own
And Thee, whose name we ever bless,
Of both the Spirit, to confess.
Praise we the Father and the Son
And Holy Spirit, with them One;
And may the Son on us bestow
The gifts that from the Spirit flow! Amen.
Notable English translations
[
edit
]
Since the
English Reformation
in the 16th century, there have been more than fifty English-language translations and paraphrases of
Veni Creator Spiritus
.
[5]
The version attributed to
Archbishop Cranmer
, his sole venture into English verse, first appeared in the Prayer Book Ordinal of 1550. It was the only metrical hymn included in the Edwardian liturgy. In 1561
John Day
included it after the psalms in his incomplete metrical psalter of that year. From 1562 onwards, in
The Whole Booke of Psalmes
, Day printed Cranmer's version at the start of the metrical paraphrases.
[6]
In terms of concision and accuracy, Cranmer compares poorly with Luther. Cranmer's sixth stanza, which mentions the
Last Judgement
and religious strife within Christendom ("the last dreadful day... strife and dissension..."), was a new addition, with no parallel in the Latin original or in Luther's version.
The version included in the 1662 revision of the
Book of Common Prayer
compressed the content of the original seven verses into four (with a two-line doxology), but retained the Latin title. It was written by Bishop
John Cosin
for the
coronation
of King
Charles I of Great Britain
in 1625.
[7]
The same words have been used at every coronation since, sung by the choir after the
Creed
and before the
Anointing
.
[8]
The first verse is:
- Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire,
- and lighten with celestial fire.
- Thou the anointing Spirit art,
- who dost thy sevenfold gifts impart.
[9]
During the
Coronation of Charles III and Camilla
in 2023, for the first time, the words were translated and also sung in
Irish Gaelic
,
Scots Gaelic
and
Welsh
, in addition to English.
[10]
The Cosin text was translated and arranged by
Grahame Davies
, Iain Urchadan and Damian McManus.
[11]
[12]
Another well-known version by the poet
John Dryden
was first published in his 1693 work,
Examen Poeticum
. It has six-line verses and hence must be sung to a
hymn tune
in 88 88 88
meter
, such as "
Melita
" by
John Bacchus Dykes
,
[13]
or else adapted in part to the
CM
with alleluias of "
Lasst uns erfreuen
".
[14]
Dryden's first verse is:
- Creator Spirit, by whose aid
- The world's foundations first were laid,
- Come, visit every pious mind;
- Come, pour thy joys on humankind;
- From sin and sorrow set us free,
- And make thy temples worthy thee.
German paraphrases
[
edit
]
Martin Luther
wrote a
paraphrase
in German, "
Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist
" (literally: Come, God Creator, Holy Ghost) as a
Lutheran hymn
for
Pentecost
, first published in 1524, with a melody derived from the chant of the Latin hymn. It appears in the Protestant hymnal
Evangelisches Gesangbuch
as EG 126.
[15]
Heinrich Bone
published his own German paraphrase in 1845, "
Komm, Schopfer Geist, kehr bei uns ein
" (literally: Come, Creator Spirit, visit us), also using an adaptation of the plainchant melody. It appears in the German Catholic hymnal
Gotteslob
(2013) and its 1975 predecessor.
A rhymed German translation or paraphrase, "Komm, Heiliger Geist, der Leben schafft" (literally: Come, Holy Spirit who creates life), was written by
Friedrich Dorr
to a melody close to the Gregorian chant, published in 1972. It became part of the
Gotteslob
hymnal in 1975, and the second edition in 2013, as GL 342 in the section "Pfingsten ? Heiliger Geist" (Pentecost ? Holy Spirit).
Musical settings
[
edit
]
Over the centuries, Veni Creator Spiritus has inspired the following works by notable composers, in approximate chronological order:
- Jehan Titelouze
,
Veni creator
(1623)
[16]
- Guillaume-Gabriel Nivers
, "L'hymne de la Pentecote" in his
2e Livre d'Orgue
(1667)
- Marc-Antoine Charpentier
, 5 settings:
- Veni creator Spiritus
, H.54, for 3 voices (or chorus), 2 violins and continuo (1670s)
[17]
- Veni creator Spiritus
, H.66, for soloists, chorus, flutes, bassoons, strings and continuo (1680s)
- Veni creator Spiritus
, H.69, for 1 voice and continuo (1690 ca.)
[18]
- Veni creator Spiritus
, H.70, for 1 voice and continuo (1690)
[19]
- Veni creator Spiritus
, H.362, for 3 voices and continuo (early 1690s?)
- Michel-Richard Delalande
,
Veni creator Spiritus
S 14 (1689) or S 14 bis (1684)
[20]
- Johann Pachelbel
, chorale prelude for organ, on "Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist" (1693)
[21]
- Nicolas de Grigny
,
Veni creator
en taille a 5, fugue a 5 for organ (5 versets) (1699)
[22]
- Henry Desmarest
,
Veni creator,
for soloists, chorus and orchestra (early 1700s)
- Johann Gottfried Walther
, chorale prelude for organ, on "Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist" (early 1700s)
- Johann Sebastian Bach
harmonized "Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist" for his four-part chorale
BWV 370
, and also used the tune as the basis for his chorale prelude for organ
BWV 631
(1708?1717), which he later extended as
BWV 667
(1750).
- Charles-Hubert Gervais
,
Veni creator
(1723)
[23]
- Ferdinando Bertoni
,
Veni creator
(1765)
[24]
- Francois Giroust
,
Veni creator
a 4 voix et orchestre (1787)
[25]
- Camille Saint-Saens
,
Veni creator
a 4 voix (1858)
[26]
- Hector Berlioz
,
Veni creator
a cappella H 141 (c.1861?1868), a
motet
for women's voices to the Latin text
- Cesar Franck
,
Veni creator
for two voices (TB) and organ, FWV 68 (1876)
- Anton Bruckner
harmonized the original tune for voice and organ as his motet
WAB 50
(c. 1884).
- Augusta Holmes
,
Veni creator
for tenor and mixed chorus, IAH 74 (1887)
- Alexandre Guilmant
, organ works in
L'Organiste liturgiste
, Op. 65, Book 1 (1884) and Book 10 (1899)
- Gustav Mahler
set the Latin text to music in Part I of his
Symphony No. 8 in E-flat major
(1906).
- Filippo Capocci
, Organ Fantasia on
Veni Creator Spiritus
(1910)
[27]
- Maurice Durufle
used the chant tune as the basis for his
symphonic organ
composition "Prelude, Adagio et Choral varie sur le theme du
Veni Creator
", Op. 4 (1926/1930).
- Charles Tournemire
,
L'Orgue Mystique: In Festo Pentecostes
, No. 25, Op. 56 (1928),
Deux Fresques Symphoniques Sacrees
II, Op. 76 (1939)
- Karol Szymanowski
,
Veni creator
for soprano, mixed chorus, organ and orchestra, Op. 57 (1930)
- Gaston Litaize
, Toccata sur le
Veni Creator
, for organ (1934)
- Marcel Dupre
, "Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist" among his organ settings of
79 Chorales
, Op. 28, No. 46 (1931), and
Veni creator
in the organ suite
Le Tombeau de Titelouze
, Op. 38, No. 8 (1942)
- Jeanne Demessieux
,
Veni creator
, Toccata for Organ (1947)
- Zoltan Gardonyi
, Partita for Organ
Veni creator spiritus
(1958)
- Paul Hindemith
concluded his Concerto for Organ and Orchestra with a Phantasy on
Veni Creator Spiritus
(1962).
- Krzysztof Penderecki
wrote a motet for mixed choir (1987).
- Cristobal Halffter
set the text for chorus and orchestra (1992).
- Petr Eben
, Toccata for Piano after Gregorian chant
Veni creator spiritus
(1996)
- Karlheinz Stockhausen
used the text in the second hour of his
Klang
cycle (2005), in a piece for two singing harpists titled
Freude
(Joy), Op. 82.
- Arvo Part
,
Veni creator
(2006)
- Zsolt Gardonyi
, Toccata for Organ
Veni creator spiritus
(2020)
[28]
- Dan Forrest
used several lines from the text in his symphonic oratorio
CREATION
(2023), including the first
Introit
and tenth
Ish Ishah
movements.
[29]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Saint Augustine's Prayer Book
(1967) [1947]. (Revised ed.) West Park, New York: Holy Cross Publications. p. 316.
- ^
"Creator Spirit, by whose aid"
.
hymnary.org
. Retrieved
22 August
2023
.
- ^
a
b
McGrath, George Warren (1939).
The Revision of the Hymns of the Roman Breviary under Urban VIII
(PDF)
(Thesis). Loyola University. p. 149
. Retrieved
2023-04-29
.
- ^
Based on
Edward Caswall
1849, from
The Lutheran Hymnal
. Concordia Publishing House. 1941. p. 233.
- ^
Nutter, Charles S.; Tillett, Wilbur F.
The Hymns and Hymn Writers of The Church
(Smith & Lamar, 1911), p. 108.
- ^
Quitslund, Beth.
The Reformation in Rhyme: Sternhold, Hopkins and the English Metrical Psalter
(Ashgate, 2008), pp. 204, 229.
- ^
Aquilina, Ivan D.
The Eucharistic Understanding of John Cosin and His Contribution to the 1662 Book Of Common Prayer
(University of Leeds, 2002), p. 6.
- ^
"Guide to the Coronation Service"
. Westminster Abbey. Archived 11 December 2013.
- ^
"The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II"
.
Oremus.org
. Retrieved
14 October
2020
.
- ^
"Grahame Davies - Welsh poet, editor and literary critic"
.
grahamedavies.com
. Retrieved
2023-08-21
.
- ^
Robinson, Matthew (6 May 2023).
"King Charles's Coronation: Read the order of service in full"
.
The Telegraph
.
- ^
Coronation of King Charles III: Veni Creator Spiritus (in four British Languages) & Zadok the Priest
, retrieved
2023-08-21
- ^
"Creator Spirit, by whose aid"
.
Hymnary.org
. Retrieved
14 October
2020
.
- ^
"Creator Spirit, By Whose Aid"
(PDF)
.
Oregon Catholic Press
. Retrieved
9 May
2017
.
- ^
"EG 126: Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist"
(PDF)
.
Evangelisches Gesangbuch
. Carus-Verlag. 2013
. Retrieved
14 November
2023
.
- ^
"Veni Creator Spiritus (Titelouze, Jean) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
"Veni creator Spiritus, H.54 (Charpentier, Marc-Antoine) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
"Veni creator Spiritus, H.69 (Charpentier, Marc-Antoine) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
"Veni creator Spiritus, H.70 (Charpentier, Marc-Antoine) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
"Veni Creator Spiritus, S.14 or 14bis (Lalande, Michel Richard de) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
"Komm Gott Schopfer, heiliger Geist, P.223 (Pachelbel, Johann) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
Sharp, G. B. (1972). "The Organist's Repertory. 11: Nicolas de Grigny, 1672-1703".
The Musical Times
.
113
(1553): 705?707.
doi
:
10.2307/956248
.
JSTOR
956248
.
- ^
Veni creator spiritus, hymne du // saint esprit
(Ms. autogr ed.). 1723.
- ^
Bertoni 1765
(Ms ed.). 1765.
- ^
Giroust, Francois (1787).
"Veni creator // par Mr Giroust. En 1787 (manuscrit autographe)"
.
Gallica
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
Veni Creator: [4 voix d'hommes]
. Paris: chez Madame Maeyens Couvreur. 1866.
- ^
"Phantasie uber 'Veni Creator Spiritus' (Capocci, Filippo) - IMSLP"
.
imslp.org
. Retrieved
2024-01-05
.
- ^
Matthew-Walker, Robert (Winter 2021). "Zsolt Gardonyi: Toccata ? Veni creator spiritus fur Orgel".
The Organ
.
100
(395): 55.
ProQuest
2509373185
.
- ^
"CREATION"
.
danforrest.com
. Retrieved
2024-06-16
.
External links
[
edit
]
Latin
Wikisource
has original text related to this article:
English
Wikisource
has original text related to this article:
|
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Church
calendar
| |
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Traditions
| |
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Music
| Hymns
|
- Breathe on Me, Breath of God
- Come Down, O Love Divine
- Der Geist des Herrn erfullt das All
(The Spirit of the Lord fills the Universe)
- Komm, Gott Schopfer, Heiliger Geist
(Come, God Creator, Holy Spirit)
- Komm, Heilger Geist, der Leben schafft
(Come, Holy Spirit, creating life)
- Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott
(Come, Holy Spirit, God and Lord)
- Komm, Schopfer Geist, kehr bei uns ein
(Come, Creator Spirit, visit us)
- Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist
(We now implore the Holy Ghost)
- Nunc sancte nobis spiritus
(Come, Holy Ghost, Who Ever One)
- O komm, du Geist der Wahrheit
(O come, you spirit of truth)
- Veni Creator Spiritus
(Come Creator Spirit)
- Veni Sancte Spiritus
(Come, Holy Spirit)
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