Music Fridays- Liturgy, Mozart, and Modern Music: Part 3

In the first two installments of this series, we examined musical settings of the Kyrie prayer, first with Motzart's Mass in C Minor and then in more contemporary music.

This week, we turn our attention to the Gloria, or the section of a liturgy or order of worship centered on praising God.  The praise and celebration of God's love and grace is central to all acts of Christian worship. Traditionally, in the communion texts which have defined worship for Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Roman Catholic and mainline Protestant Christians for centuries, there is a very formal and established place for the Gloria in our worship. Even today, the dinging of the Doxology and the Gloria Patri in United Methodist congregations continues this ancient pattern, though typically used in a much less formal way today.

In Mozart's Mass in C Minor, the Glora is broken into seven music sections which, when taken together, comprise a prayer which praises God, seeks God's mercy, and celebrates the doctrine of the Trinity. Mozart based his text on the Latin version of the Liturgy. I will post a translation of Mozart's text under each Youtube clip. Just FYI, the current version of the Latin text used by Catholics and some Protestants today reads:

Glory be to God on high.
And in earth peace towards men of good will.
We praise thee.
We bless thee.
We worship thee.
We glorify thee.
We give thanks to thee for thy great glory.
O Lord God, heavenly King
God the Father almighty.
O Lord, the only-begotten Son Jesu Christ.
O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father.
Thou that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer.
Thou that sittest at the right of the Father, have mercy upon us.
For thou only art Holy. Thou only art the Lord. Thou only art the Most High.
Thou only, O Jesu Christ,
with the Holy Ghost, art Most
High in the glory of God the Father. Amen

On with the show:

Gloria

Translation: Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace to all those of good will.

Laudamus te

Translation: We praise You, we bless You, we adore You, we glorify You.

Gratias

Translation:We give thanks to You, according to Your great glory.

Domine Deus

Translation:Lord God, king of heaven, God the almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father.

Qui tollis

Translation: You who remove the sins of the world, have mercy on us. You who remove the sins of the world, receive our prayer. You who sits at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.

Quoniam

Translation: Because you alone are holy. You alone are the Lord. You alone are the highest, ...

Cum Sancto Spiritu

Translation:... Jesus Christ. With the Holy Ghost in the glory of God the Father, Amen.

Next week, we'll look at present-day musical expressions of the Gloria.