O salutaris hostia
"O Salutaris Hostia" (Latin, "O Saving Victim" or "O Saving Sacrifice") is a section of one of the Eucharistic hymns written by Thomas Aquinas for the Feast of Corpus Christi and the Hour of Lauds in the Divine Office. It is actually the last two stanzas of the hymn Verbum supernum prodiens and is used for the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. The other two hymns written by Aquinas for the Feast contain the famous sections Panis angelicus and Tantum ergo.
Text
| Latin text | Literal Translation | Verse Rendering |
|---|---|---|
| O salutaris Hostia, Quae caeli pandis ostium: Bella premunt hostilia, Da robur, fer auxilium. Uni trinoque Domino Sit sempiterna gloria, Qui vitam sine termino Nobis donet in patria. Amen. |
O saving Victim, Who expandest the door of heaven, Hostile armies press, Give strength; bear aid. To the One and Triune Lord, May there be everlasting glory; who life without end gives us in the homeland. Amen. |
O saving Victim, opening wide The gate of Heaven to man below; Our foes press hard on every side; Thine aid supply; thy strength bestow. To thy great name be endless praise, Immortal Godhead, One in Three. Oh, grant us endless length of days, In our true native land with thee. Amen. |
Local usage
As a liturgical text, the hymn is traditionally sung in Latin, but after the introduction of vernacular languages, it is also sung in the vernacular.
In Notre-Dame de Paris a middle stanza is inserted:
| Latin Text | Literal Translation |
|---|---|
| O vere digna Hostia, Spes unica fidelium: In te confidit Francia; Da pacem, serva lilium.[1] |
O truly worthy Victim, Only hope of the faithful: in Thee trusts France; Give peace, conserve the lily. |
In Scotland a similar middle stanza is inserted:
| Latin Text | Literal Translation |
|---|---|
| Immaculata Hostia, Spes unica fidelium: In te confidit Scotia; Da pacem, serva cirsium.[1] |
O Immaculate Victim, Only hope of the faithful: in Thee trusts Scotland; Give peace, conserve the thistle. |
Musical settings
William Byrd composed a setting for this hymn in the late 1500s. Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed six settings for "O salutaris Hostia": H.236 (1670), H.262 (1690), H.261 (1690), H.36 (1690), H.248 (1679–80), and H.249 (1681). Spanish composer Arriaga wrote a motet on the hymn for two tenors, bass and strings in 1823. Gioachino Rossini composed two settings of the hymn: one as a standalone piece for chorus and the other as a movement for solo soprano in his Petite messe solennelle. Both stanzas are retained in Arthur Honegger's 1939 setting for mezzo-soprano and piano, whereas only the first stanza is included in Vytautas Miškinis' setting for mixed choir a cappella, O salutaris hostia, in 1991. The first stanza is also inserted as part of the Sanctus of Robert Schumann's Mass in C minor, Op. posth. 147 (1852–53). San Francisco-based composer David Conte (b. 1955) included the hymn as the first movement of his Two Hymns in Honor of the Blessed Sacrament (2005).[2]
From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia
O Salutaris Hostia — (O Saving Host).
The first line of the penultimate stanza of the hymn, "Verbum supernum prodiens", composed by St. Thomas Aquinas for the Hour of Lauds in the Office of the Feast of Corpus Christi. This stanza and the final stanza, or doxology (Uni trinoque domino), have been selected to form a separate hymn for Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Usually, and most appropriately, it is begun either when the door of the tabernacle is opened or when the monstrance is being placed on the throne of exposition. In England the singing of the "O Salutaris" is enjoined in the "Ritus servandus", the code of procedure approved by a former synod of the Province of Westminster (see BENEDICTION OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT). But the use of the hymn, not being prescribed in the rubrics, is not of universal obligation. It is, however, very generally used, although any other appropriate text is permissible, such as the "Adoro Te devote", the "Pange, lingua", the antiphon "O sacrum convivium" etc. While it is not forbidden to sing vernacular hymns at Benediction the "O Salutaris", being a liturgical text, cannot be sung in the vernacular (S.R.C., 27, Feb., 1882, Leavenworth. Cf. "Am. Eccl., Rev.", April, 1895, 341). The hymn is often chosen as a motet for solemn Mass, and may thus be used after the proper Offertory for the day has been sung or recited. An indefensible, but, fortunately, very rare, custom, perhaps inaugurated by Pierre de la Rue, the profound contrapuntal composer of the fifteenth century, was that of replacing the "Benedictus" at Mass by the "O Salutaris". Gounod imitated his example in his first "Mass of the Orpheonistes", but in his second mass of that name gives both the "Benedictus" and the "O Salutaris", as Rossini in his posthumous "Messe Solennelle" and Prince Poniatowski in his "Mass in F". The plain-song melody in the eighth mode is beautiful, and forms the theme of de la Rue's musical tour de force in the Mass of that title. The modern settings have been very numerous, although not always serviceable, inasmuch as many are too theatrical for church use; others are entirely for solo use, and still others probably violate the prescription of the Motu Proprio of 22 November, 1903, requiring that in hymns the traditional form be preserved. There are about twenty-five poetical versions of the hymn in English.
References
- Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Bennett, L.P; Royal Musical Association (2009). Sacred Repertories in Paris Under Louis XIII: Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, MS Vma Rés. 571. Ashgate. p. 129. ISBN 9780754668213. Retrieved 2014-12-15.
- Back to citation "Two Hymns in Honor of the Blessed Sacrament: O Salutaris hostia- Tantum Ergo". ECS Publishing. E.C. Schirmer Publishing Group. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
External links
- O salutaris hostia: Text, translations and list of free scores by several composers at the Choral Public Domain Library (ChoralWiki)
- Sheet Music at Hymnary