The Medieval Latin Hymn Ruth Ellis Messenger, Ph.D. Te decet hymnus Deus in Sion _Psalm 65:1_ CAPITAL PRESS 1731—14th St., N. W. WASHINGTON, D. C. Copyright, 1953 _by_ Ruth Ellis Messenger ALL RIGHTS RESERVED LITHOGRAPHED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA _To_ J. Vincent Higginson Contents Chapter Page Preface ix I. Early Middle Ages: Latin Hymns of the Fourth Century 1 II. Early Middle Ages: The Old Hymnal 9 III. The Ninth Century Revival: Hymns 19 IV. The Ninth Century Revival: Sequences 35 V. Late Middle Ages: Hymns and Sequences 46 VI. Late Middle Ages: Processional Hymns 61 VII. Influence and Survival of Latin Hymns 74 Illustrative Hymns 83 Notes 113 Bibliography 123 Index 135 Preface The purpose of this volume is to trace the history of the medieval Latin hymn from the point of view of usage. It must be evident to any student of a subject which is spread over a thousand years of human experience in the widening environment of an entire continent that a guiding thread is needed to show the way. One must not, at the same time, ignore the fact that a monumental religious literature in the poetic field is involved. But the hymn is functional, having its greatest significance as a lyric when employed in an act of worship. Latin hymnology, moreover, is an aspect of ecclesiastical studies following the history of the Church through the classical and medieval ages into modern times. A wider cultural background than the immediate interest of theology and religion is reflected in the hymns of any age. Here often lie secrets of interpretation which make possible an appreciation of contemporary thought. As the study of the medieval hymn is followed from the standpoint of life and usage, the antiquarian and the literary critic, who cannot fully satisfy the quest of the student for reality, must give place to the medieval worshiper himself who has revealed in its entirety each successive phase of a hymnological history not yet ended.