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Te Deum

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File:Te Deum window by Whall.jpg
Te Deum stained glass window by Christopher Whall at St Mary's church, Ware, Hertfordshire

The Te Deum (/teɪ ˈdeɪəm/ or /tiː ˈdiːəm/,[1][2] Latin: [te ˈde.um]; from its incipit, Te Deum laudamus (Latin for 'Thee, God, we praise')) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to a date before AD 500, but perhaps with antecedents that place it much earlier.[3] It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin Church with other parts of the Ambrosian Rite of Milan in the 6th to 8th centuries. It is sometimes known as the Ambrosian Hymn, although authorship by Saint Ambrose is unlikely. The term Te Deum can also refer to a short religious service (of blessing or thanks) that is based upon the hymn.[4]

It continues in use in many contexts by several denominations. In particular it is the core of a short church service of thanksgiving held, often at short notice, to celebrate good news such as a military victory, the signing of a peace treaty, or the birth of a royal child.

History

Authorship of the hymn is traditionally ascribed to Saint Ambrose (died 397) or Saint Augustine (died 430). In 19th-century scholarship, Saint Hilary of Poitiers (died 367) and Saint Nicetas of Remesiana (died 414) were proposed as possible authors. In the 20th century, the association with Nicetas has been deprecated, so that the hymn, while almost certainly dating to the 4th century, is considered as being of uncertain authorship. Authorship of Nicetas of Remesiana was suggested by the association of the name "Nicetas" with the hymn in manuscripts from the 10th century onward, and was particularly defended in the 1890s by Germain Morin. Hymnologists of the 20th century, especially Ernst Kähler (1958), have shown the association with "Nicetas" to be spurious.[5] The Te Deum has structural similarities with a eucharistic prayer and it has been proposed that it was originally composed as part of one.[6]

The hymn was part of the Old Hymnal since it was introduced to the Benedictine order in the 6th century, and it was preserved in the Frankish Hymnal of the 8th century. It was, however, removed from the New Hymnal which became prevalent in the 10th century. It was restored in the 12th century in hymnals that attempted to restore the praiseful intent of the Rule of St. Benedict, Chap. 12: How the Morning Office Is to Be Said.

In the traditional office, the Te Deum is sung at the end of Matins on all days when the Gloria is said at Mass; those days are all Sundays outside Advent, Septuagesima, Lent, and Passiontide; on all feasts (except the Triduum) and on all ferias during Eastertide.

Before the 1961 reforms of Pope John XXIII, neither the Gloria nor the Te Deum were said on the feast of the Holy Innocents, unless it fell on Sunday, as they were martyred before the death of Christ and therefore could not be presumed to immediately attain the beatific vision.[7]

In the Liturgy of the Hours of Pope Paul VI, the Te Deum is sung at the end of the Office of Readings on all Sundays except those in Lent, on all solemnities, on the octaves of Easter and Christmas, and on all feasts.[8] The revised Handbook of Indulgences (fourth edition) grants a plenary indulgence, under the usual conditions, to those who recite it in public on New Year's Eve.[9][10]

In the Daily Office of the Catholic Ordinariates the Te Deum is sung at Morning Prayer as the Canticle following the First Lesson. It is appointed for (1) Sundays except in Pre-Lent and Lent, (2) Feasts and Solemnities, and (3) all days during the Octaves of Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost.[11]

It is also used together with the standard canticles in Morning Prayer as prescribed in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, as an option in Morning Prayer or Matins for Lutherans, and is retained by many churches of the Reformed tradition.

The hymn is in regular use in the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church, Anglican Church and Methodist Church (mostly before the Homily) in the Office of Readings found in the Liturgy of the Hours, and in thanksgiving to God for a special blessing such as the election of a pope, the consecration of a bishop, the canonization of a saint, a religious profession, the publication of a treaty of peace, a royal coronation, etc. It is sung either after Mass or the Divine Office or as a separate religious ceremony.[12] The hymn also remains in use in the Anglican Communion and some Lutheran Churches in similar settings.

Music and text

Originally, the hymn Te Deum was written on a Gregorian chant melody. The petitions at the end of the hymn (beginning Salvum fac populum tuum) are a selection of verses from the book of Psalms, appended subsequently to the original hymn.

The hymn follows the outline of the Apostles' Creed, mixing a poetic vision of the heavenly liturgy with its declaration of faith. Calling on the name of God immediately, the hymn proceeds to name all those who praise and venerate God, from the hierarchy of heavenly creatures to those Christian faithful already in heaven to the Church spread throughout the world.

The hymn then returns to its credal formula, naming Christ and recalling his birth, suffering and death, his resurrection and glorification. At this point the hymn turns to the subjects declaiming the praise, both the universal Church and the singer in particular, asking for mercy on past sins, protection from future sin, and the hoped-for reunification with the elect.

Latin and English text

Latin text Translation from the Book of Common Prayer Translation from ICEL (2020), as confirmed by the Holy See, 14 May 2020 Prot. No. 6/20[13]
Te Deum laudámus: te Dominum confitémur. We praise thee, O God: we acknowledge thee to be the Lord. O God, we praise you; O Lord, we acclaim you.
Te ætérnum Patrem omnis terra venerátur. All the earth doth worship thee: the Father everlasting. Eternal Father, all the earth reveres you.
Tibi omnes Angeli; tibi cæli et univérsae potestátes. To thee all Angels cry aloud: the Heavens, and all the Powers therein. All the angels, the heavens and the Pow'rs of heaven,
Tibi Chérubim et Séraphim incessábili voce proclámant: To thee Cherubin and Seraphin: continually do cry, Cherubim and Seraphim cry out to you in endless praise:
Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dóminus Deus Sábaoth. Holy, Holy, Holy: Lord God of Sabaoth; Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts,
Pleni sunt cæli et terra majestátis glóriæ tuæ. Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty: of thy glory. heaven and earth are filled with the majesty of your glory.
Te gloriósus Apostolórum chorus; The glorious company of the Apostles: praise thee. The glorious choir of Apostles sings to you,
Te Prophetárum laudábilis númerus; The goodly fellowship of the Prophets: praise thee. the noble company of prophets praises you,
Te Mártyrum candidátus laudat exércitus. The noble army of Martyrs: praise thee. the white-robed army of martyrs glorifies you,
Te per orbem terrárum sancta confitétur Ecclésia: The holy Church throughout all the world: doth acknowledge thee; Holy Church throughout the earth proclaims you,
Patrem imménsæ majestátis; The Father: of an infinite Majesty; Father of boundless majesty,
Venerándum tuum verum et únicum Fílium; Thine honourable, true: and only Son; with your true and only Son, worthy of adoration,
Sanctum quoque Paráclitum Spíritum. Also the Holy Ghost: the Comforter. and the Holy Spirit, Paraclete.
Tu Rex glóriæ, Christe. Thou art the King of Glory: O Christ. You, O Christ, are the King of glory,
Tu Patris sempitérnus es Fílius. Thou art the everlasting Son: of the Father. you are the Father's everlasting Son;
Tu ad liberándum susceptúrus hóminem, non horruísti Vírginis úterum. When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man: thou didst not abhor the Virgin's womb. when you resolved to save the human race, you did not spurn the Virgin's womb;
Tu, devícto mortis acúleo, aperuísti credéntibus regna cælórum. When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death: thou didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers. you overcame the sting of death and opened wide the Kingdom of Heaven to those who put their faith in you.
Tu ad déxteram Dei sedes, in glória Patris. Thou sittest at the right hand of God: in the glory of the Father. You are seated at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father.
Judex créderis esse ventúrus. We believe that thou shalt come: to be our Judge. We believe you are the Judge who is to come.
Te ergo quǽsumus, tuis fámulis súbveni, quos pretióso sánguine redemísti. We therefore pray thee, help thy servants: whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood. And so we beg you, help your servants, redeemed by your most precious blood.
Ætérna fac cum sanctis tuis in glória numerári. Make them to be numbered with thy Saints: in glory everlasting. Number them among your saints in eternal glory.
[added later, mainly from Psalm verses:]
Salvum fac pópulum tuum, Dómine, et bénedic hæreditáti tuæ. 		[added later, mainly from Psalm verses:]
O Lord, save thy people: and bless thine heritage. 		[added later, mainly from Psalm verses:]
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.
Et rege eos, et extólle illos usque in ætérnum. Govern them: and lift them up for ever. Shepherd them and raise them to eternal life.
Per síngulos dies benedícimus te. Day by day: we magnify thee; Day by day, we bless you
Et laudámus nomen tuum in sǽculum, et in sǽculum sǽculi. And we worship thy Name: ever world without end. and praise your name for endless ages evermore.
Dignáre, Dómine, die isto sine peccáto nos custodíre. Vouchsafe, O Lord: to keep us this day without sin. Be gracious, Lord, on this day, and keep us from all sin.
Miserére nostri, Dómine, miserére nostri. O Lord, have mercy upon us: have mercy upon us. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy.
Fiat misericórdia tua, Dómine, super nos, quemádmodum sperávimus in te. O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us: as our trust is in thee. May your mercy be upon us, Lord, as we place our trust in you.
In te, Dómine, sperávi: non confúndar in ætérnum. O Lord, in thee have I trusted: let me never be confounded. In you, O Lord, I rest my hope: let me never be put to shame.

In the Book of Common Prayer, verse is written in half-lines, at which reading pauses, indicated by colons in the text.

Indulgence

The Enchiridion Indulgentiarum of 2004 grants plenary or partial indulgence under certain circumstances.[14][15]

Service

A Te Deum service is a short religious service, based upon the singing of the hymn, held to give thanks.[4] In Sweden, for example, it may be held in the Royal Chapel in connection with the birth of a prince or princess, christenings, milestone birthdays, jubilees and other important events within the royal family of Sweden.[16]

In Belgium, a service is held annually in the presence of the royal family on 21 July, which is the date Leopold I of Belgium officially became king of the Belgians and is to this day the national holiday of Belgium.

In Luxembourg, a service is held annually in the presence of the grand-ducal family to celebrate the Grand Duke's Official Birthday, which is also the nation's national day, on either 23 or 24 June.[17]

In the Autonomous Region of Madeira, the Bishop of Funchal holds a Te Deum service on 31 December of each year.[18]

It is also celebrated in some South American countries such as Argentina, Chile, and Peru on their national days.

Musical settings

The text has been set to music by many composers, with settings by Zelenka, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Berlioz, Verdi, Bruckner, Furtwängler, Dvořák, Britten, Kodály, and Pärt among the better known. Jean-Baptiste Lully wrote a setting of Te Deum for the court of Louis XIV of France, and received a fatal injury while conducting it. Michel Richard de Lalande wrote a setting of the Te Deum, S.32. The prelude to Marc-Antoine Charpentier's setting (H.146) is well known in Europe on account of its being used as the theme music for Eurovision network broadcasts of the European Broadcasting Union, most notably the Eurovision Song Contest and Jeux Sans Frontières. He wrote also three other settings of the Te Deum: H.145, H.147, H.148. Henry Desmarets, two settings of Te Deum (1687). Louis-Nicolas Clérambault wrote three settings of the Te Deum: C.137, C.138, C.155. Earlier it had been used as the theme music for Bud Greenspan's documentary series, The Olympiad. Sir William Walton's Coronation Te Deum was written for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. Other English settings include those by Thomas Tallis, William Byrd, Henry Purcell, Edward Elgar, Richard St. Clair and Herbert Howells, as well as five settings by George Frideric Handel, three settings by Charles Villiers Stanford, two settings by Arthur Sullivan, and two settings by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Giacomo Puccini's opera Tosca features a dramatic performance of the initial part of the Te Deum at the end of Act I.

The traditional chant melody was the basis for elaborate Te Deum compositions by notable French composer organists, Louis Marchand, Guillaume Lasceux, Charles Tournemire (1930), Jean Langlais (1934), and Jeanne Demessieux (1958), which are still widely performed today.

A version by Father Michael Keating is popular in some Charismatic circles. Mark Hayes wrote a setting of the text in 2005, with Latin phrases interpolated amid primarily English lyrics. In 1978, British hymnodist Christopher Idle[19] wrote God We Praise You,[20] a version of the text in 8.7.8.7.D meter, set to the tune Rustington. British composer John Rutter has composed two settings of this hymn, one entitled Te Deum and the other Winchester Te Deum. Igor Stravinsky set the first 12 lines of the text as part of The Flood in 1962. Antony Pitts was commissioned by the London Festival of Contemporary Church Music to write a setting for the 2011 10th Anniversary Festival.[21][22] The 18th-century German hymn Großer Gott, wir loben dich is a free translation of the Te Deum, which was translated into English in the 19th century as "Holy God, We Praise Thy Name."[23]

American composer Marie Pooler wrote Analyses of Choral Settings of the Te Deum by the Contemporary Composers Benjamin Britten, Leo Sowerby, Halsey Stevens, and Vincent Persichetti for her master’s thesis at California State University Fullerton.[24]

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

An abbreviated title commonly given both to the original Latin text and the translations of a hymn in rhythmical prose, of which the opening words, Te Deum Laudamus, formed its earliest known title (namely in the Rule of St. Caesarius for monks, written probably when he was Abbot of Lérins, before A.D. 502). This longer title is used in the "Rules for Virgins" composed by St. Caesarius while Archbishop of Arles, and by his second successor in the same see, St. Aurelian, also in the Rule of St. Benedict; and generally in earlier literature. The hymn is also sometimes styled "Hymnus Ambrosianus", the "Ambrosian Hymn"; and in the Roman Breviary it is still entitled, at the end of Matins for Sunday, "Hymnus SS. Ambrosii et Augustini". It is interesting to note that the title has been changed to "Hymnus Ambrosianus" in the "Psalterium" of the new Roman Breviary of Pius X. This Psalterium has been printed (1912), but became obligatory only from I Jan., 1913. The Te Deum is found in the first part of the "Psalterium Ordinarium", etc. The tradition that it was spontaneously composed and sung alternately by these saints on the night of St. Augustine's baptism (A.D.387) can be traced back to the end of the eighth century, and is referred to in the middle of the ninth century by Hincmar of Reims (ut a majoribus nostris audivimus) in his second work, "De praedestinatione" (P.L., CXXV, 290), and in an elaborated form in a Milanese chronicle attributed to Datius, Bishop of Milan (d. about 552), but really dating only from the eleventh century (thus Mabillon, Muratori, Merati, etc.). This tradition is now generally rejected by scholars.

(a) It should naturally have held, from earliest times, a prominent place in Milan; but of the earlier manuscripts of the Te Deum which refer to the tradition in their titles, none has any connection with Milan, while the "Milan Cathedral Breviary" text (eleventh century) has no title whatever. (b) The tradition ascribing the authorship to the two saints is not unique. Another tradition is represented by the remark of Abbo of Fleury (A.D. 985) in his "Quaestiones grammaticales" (P.L., CXXXIX, 532, #19) concerning the erroneous substitution of "suscepisti" for "suscepturus" in the verse "Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem", etc., in what he styles "Dei palinodia quam composuit Hilarius Pictaviensis episcopus". It may be added that an eighth-or ninth-century MS. Of the hymn, now at Munich, refers it to St. Hilary. (c) But neither to Hilary nor to Ambrose may the hymn be prudently ascribed, because although both composed hymns, the Te Deum is in rhythmical prose, and not in the classical metres of the hymns known to have been written by them. While, from the ninth century down to the present day, there is no century and no country of Western Europe that has not given its witness to the traditional ascription, the earliest MS., the "Bangor Antiphonary" (seventh cent.) gives as title merely "Ymnum in die dominica", while other early MSS. make no reference to the authorship, either giving no titles or contenting themselves with such general ones as "Laudatio Dei" (MS of eighth cent.), "Laus angelica" (twelfth cent.), "Hymnus matutinalis"Ö "Hymnus die dominico", "Hymnum dominicale", etc. Other MSS. ascribe the hymn variously to St. Nicetus, Vicetus (obviously a slip of the pen for Nicetus), Nicetius, Nicetes, Neceta (all of these being thought identical with Niceta or Nicetas, Bishop of Remesiana, q. v.), to St. Hilarius, St. Abundius, St. Sisebutus, St. Ambrose, or St. Augustine. (d) The importance of the occasion to which the legend assigns the composition of the hymn (the baptism of St. Augustine) and the comparatively late appearance of the ascription to the two saints are additional arguments against the tradition. Merati thinks the legend may have been based on the words of a spurious sermon, given as no. 92 in an edition of the works of St. Ambrose (Paris, 1549), "De Augustini Baptismo": "In quo una vobiscum cum divino instinctu Hymnum cantavimus de Christi fide". It may be added that the Maurists omitted the Te Deum from their edition of St. Ambrose; that Batiffol ("Hist. Du Brev. Romain", Paris, 1893, p. 98; authorized and corrected tr., London, 1898, p.110) writes: "No one thinks now of attributing this cento either to St. Ambrose or to St. Augustine"; that Father Burton, in his "Life of St. Augustine,ÖAn Historical Study" (Dublin, 3rd ed., 1897) does not even mention the legend about the dual authorship and the baptism of St. Augustine; and finally that Portalie (see AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO) remarks: "The tradition maintaining that the Te Deum was sung on that occasion by the bishop and the neophyte alternately is groundless".

The other names mentioned above not being favoured by scholars, the question of authorship remained open. In 1894 Dom Morin put forward Nicetas of Remesiana for the honour of authorship. His suggestion has been adopted by Zahn, Kattenbusch, Kirsch (in Germany); Frere, Burn (in England), while the Anglican Bishop of Salisbury considers Morin's conjecture "very plausible"; and in France, by Batiffol. The reasons for this view are: (1) Ten MSS. (the earliest of the tenth century), mostly of Irish origin, name Nicetas (with variant spellings and identifications, however); and Ireland remote from the continent of Europe, could easily keep until the tenth century a tradition of the fifth. (2) The probable date of composition of the hymn corresponds with that of the literary activity of Nicetas. (3) St. Paulinus of Nola praises (Carmina, xvii, xxvii) the poetic and hymnodal gifts of his friend Nicetas. (4) Gennadius speaks of the neat and simple style of his prose, and Cassiodorus commends his conciseness. These critical appreciations are thought applicable to the style of the Te Deum, which depends for its effect mostly on the nobility of the theme and the simplicity and directness of the expression. (5) The authorship of the treatises "De psalmodiae bono" and "De vigiliis servorum Dei" was formerly ascribed to Nicetas of Trier, but is now attributed with greatest probability to Nicetas of Remesiana. Their "internal evidence Ö proves that Nicetas felt the need of such a hymn as the Te deum, and, so to speak, lived in the same sphere of religious thought" (Burn, cii), while parallel passages from his writings (given by Burn, ciii-civ), although offering no direct quotation, exhibit similarity of thought and diction.

The authorship of St. Nicetas is questioned by some scholars (Cagin, P. Wagner, Agaesse, Koestlin, Blume). Among the passages cited to indicate a much earlier origin perhaps the most notable one is that from the "De mortalitate" (xxvi) of St. Cyprian of Carthage, written during the plague in 252: "Illic apostolorum gloriosus chorus; illic prophetarum exsultantium numerus; illic martyrum innumerabilis populus ob certaminis et passionis gloriam coronatus; triumphantes virgines, quae concupiscentiam carnis et corporis continentiae robore subegerunt; remunerati misericordes Ö" There is an obvious similarity between this and the verses of the Te Deum: "Te gloriosus apostolorum chorus; te prophetarum laudabilis numerus; te martyrum candidatus laudat exercitus [verses 7–9] Ö Aeterna fac cum sanctis tuis gloria munerari [verse 21]". Perhaps the "remunerati" of St. Cyprian and the "munerari" of the oldest texts of the Te Deum are a mere coincidence; but the rest of the similar passages cannot be an accident. Which was the earlier — the Te Deum or the text of St. Cyprian? It is contended that, however well known and highly esteemed the works of the saint, there is little in this particular passage to strike the fancy of a hymn-writer, while it would be a very natural thing for a prose writer to borrow some expressions from such a widely-sung hymn as the Te Deum may have been. Moreover, if the hymn was borrowed from St. Cyprian, why did it not include the "virgines" instead of stopping with "martyrum"? Additional argument for a very early origin of at least the first ten verses of the hymn is found in comparisons between these and the texts and melody of the Prefaces, in the structure of the Gloria in excelsis, in the rhythmic and melodic character of the Te Deum, in the Greek translations.

This archaeological argument cannot be stated intelligibly in a few words, but some of its bases may be mentioned: (a) If the Te Deum were composed in the latter years of the fourth century, it would be a unique exception to the hymnology of that time, which was all fashioned in the regular strophic and metric manner introduced and popularized by St. Ambrose. (b) From the point of view of melody, the hymn has three divisions: verses 1–13, 14–20, 21 to the end. The first melody (1–13) is apparently older than the others. (c) From the point of view of rhythm, there are also three divisions: verses 14–21 exhibit perfect conformity with the laws of the "cursus", or rhythmic closes, which date from the fourth century, verses 1–10, however, have only five (4, 6 and 8–10) verses closed with the rhythmical cursus, and these five are supposed to be the result of accident; verses 22 to the end belong to a wholly different category, being taken mostly from the Psalms (xxvii, 9; cxliv, 2; cxxii, 3; xxxii, 22; xxx, 2). It is argued that, judged by melody and rhythm, the first ten verses form a complete hymn (verses 11–13 having been added subsequently as a doxology) to God the Father, while verses 14–21 form a hymn (added in the fourth century) to Christ. As noted above, the first ten verses offer (vv. 7–9) the parallelism with the words of St. Cyprian, and are, for the various reasons outlined, supposed to antedate the year 252. Speculation ascribes their authorship to Pope St. Anicetus (d. about A.D. 168).

Three textual points may be noted here. "Unigenitum" in v. 12 is considered the original reading ("unicum" having supplanted it perhaps through the influence of the Apostles' Creed, in which "unigenitum" was rare). In v. 21 nearly all MSS. read "munerari" (gloria munerari) instead of the present "numerari" (in gloria numerari) which Blume has found in a twelfth-century MS., and which perhaps was suggested by the words in the Canon of the Mass: "in electorum tuorum jubeas grege numerari". Verse 16, "Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem", etc., offers much opportunity for critical discussion. Most of the old MSS. favour "suscepisti" (with "liberandum", followed sometimes by "mundum" - Tu ad liberandum mundum suscepisti hominem): but "suscepturus", contended for by Abbo of Fleury, Hincmar, and others, and quoted in a letter of Cyprian of Toulon (about 530), was probably the original word. The verse does not lend itself readily to translation. A fifteenth-century translation runs: "When thou shouldest take upon Thee mankind for the deliverance of men, thou horydest not the Virgin's womb". With similar accuracy a Sarum "Primer" of 1504 has: "Thou (when thou shouldest take upon our nature to delyver man) dydest not abhorre a virgynes wombe". The last "Primer" of Henry VIII (1546) was probably the first to introduce the ambiguous rendering: "When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man". The (Baltimore) "Manual of Prayers" is not more accurate: "Thou having taken upon Thee to deliver man, didst not abhor the Virgin's womb". The "Roman Missal Adapted to the Use of the Laity" (New York, 1901) is laboriously accurate: "Thou, when about to take upon Thee man to deliver him, didst not fear the Virgins"s womb". The "Missal for the Use of the Laity" (London, new ed. 1903, cxxxiv) gives a new version in rhyme:

"Thou, to redeem lost man from hell's dark doom,

Didst not abhor the lowly Virgin's womb".

This is not far removed from Dryden's version:

"Thou, who to save the world's impending doom,

Vouchsaf'dst to dwell within a Virgin's womb".

The general rubrics (titulus XXXI) of the Roman Breviary direct the recitation of the Te Deum at the end of Matins: (a) on all feasts throughout the year, whether of nine or of three lessons, and throughout their octaves. It is said on the octave day of the feast of the Holy Innocents, but not on the feast itself unless this should fall on Sunday; (b) on all Sundays from Easter (inclusively) to Advent (exclusively) and from Christmas (inclusively) to Septuagesima (exclusively); (c) on all ferial days during Eastertide (namely from Low Sunday to Ascension Day) except Rogation Monday. For the sake of greater explicitness, the rubrics add that it is not said on the Sundays of Advent, or from Septuagesima to Palm Sunday inclusively, or on ferial days outside of Eastertide. It is said immediately after the last lesson, and therefore replaces the third or ninth responsory, as the case may be; but on days when it is not said, its place is occupied by the responsory. The Te Deum is followed immediately by Lauds except on Christmas Day (when it is followed by the prayer, and this is Mass). In general, the Te Deum may be said to follow the same rubric as the Gloria in excelsis at Mass.

In addition to its use in the Divine Office, the Te Deum is occasionally sung in thanksgiving to God for some special blessing (e.g. the election of a pope, the consecration of a bishop, the canonization of a saint, the profession of a religious, the publication of a treaty of peace, a royal coronation, etc.), and then usually after Mass or Divine Office, or as a separate religious ceremony. When sung thus immediately before or after Mass, the celebrant, who intones the hymn, may wear the vestments appropriate in colour to the day, unless these should happen to be black. Otherwise, while the rubrics prescribe no special colour, Violet is forbidden in processions of thanksgiving (pro gratiarum actione), green is inappropriate for such solemn occasions, red (though permissible) would not suggest itself, unless some such feast as Pentecost, for example, should call for it. White, therefore, or gold, which is considered its equivalent, is thus left as the most suitable colour. The choir and congregation sing the hymn standing, even when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed, but kneel during the verse "Te ergo quaesumusÖ" At the end the versicles "Benedicamus Patrem" etc. are added, followed by the single prayer "Deus cujus misericordiae".

There is practically but one plain-chant melody for the hymn, varying greatly, however, in different MSS. The official and typical melody is now given in the Vatican Gradual (1908) in the Appendix (pro gratiarum actione) in two forms, the tonus solemnis (in which every verse begins with preparatory or intoning notes) and juxta morem romanum (in which the verse begins ex abrupto). Pothier notes a strong affinity between the melodies of the Te Deum laudamus, te dominum confitemur and those of the Preface, Per Omnia Ö Sursum corda. He also points out (Mélodies grégoriennes, 239) a psalmodic turn in the melody of the Te Deum, strengthened by the introduction of a distinct antiphon-form at the words "Aeterna fac", etc., the antiphonal melody being thrice repeated. While the chant melody has been frequently used as a canto fermo for polyphonic Masses, the polyphonic settings are few compared with many hymns of less prominence. Palestrina, Jacob Haendl, and Felice Anerio have thus treated the old melody. Italian composers of the seventeenth century made settings for several choirs with organ and orchestra. Cherubini's manuscript setting is lost. Berlioz considered the finale of his own setting (for two choirs, orchestra, and organ) "undoubtedly his finest work". Sometimes the alternate verses only are set to music, so that another choir or the congregation may sing the other verses in plain-chant (as in the Miserere, q. v.). The Latin text has been translated into English and has received many settings in that form. Handel's "Utrecht" and "Dettingen" Te Deums are famous. One interesting feature of the latter is that it borrows inspiration for ten of its numbers from a Te Deum composed by the Minorite Francesco Urio, and able Milanese composer of the seventeenth-eighteenth century. Perhaps the most satisfactory of the recent setting of the Te Deum for use in Church is that of Edgar Tinel, written to celebrate the seventy-fifth anniversary of Belgian independence (1830–1905). It is composed for six-voiced mixed choir, orchestra, and organ.

There are about twenty-five metrical translations into English, including the sonorous version of Dryden, "Thee, Sovereign God, our grateful accents praise", and that of the Rev. Clarence A. Walworth, commonly used in American Catholic hymnals, "Holy God, we praise Thy Name", but written before his conversion, as it appeared with date of 1853 in the "Evangelical Hymnal". There are also six versions into English based on Luther's free rendering into German. There are many German versions, of which the "Grosser Gott, wir loben dich" is commonly used in Catholic churches. Probably the most recent Catholic translation is that found in the new edition (London, 1903) of Provost Husenbeth's "Missal for the Use of the Laity", "We praise thee, God: we glorify thee, Lord."

References

  1. Back to citation "Te Deum". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. OCLC 1032680871. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  2. Back to citation "Te Deum". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  3. Back to citation Kooy, Brian K. (25 September 2007). "The Catholic Encyclopedia (New Advent)2007313Kevin Knight. The Catholic Encyclopedia (New Advent). Last visited May 2007. URL: www.newadvent.org/cathen/index.html Gratis". Reference Reviews. 21 (7): 14–16. doi:10.1108/09504120710821550. ISSN 0950-4125.
  4. Back to citation occurrence 4.0 Back to citation occurrence 4.1 Pinnock, William Henry (1858). "Te Deum, a Separate Service". The laws and usages of the Church and clergy. Cambridge: J. Hall and Son. p. 1301.
  5. Back to citation Springer, C. P. E. (1976). "Te Deum". Theologische Realenzyklopädie. Walter de Gruyter. pp. 24–. ISBN 9783110171341.
  6. Back to citation Brown, Rosalind (19 July 2009). "On singing 'Te Deum'". www.durhamcathedral.co.uk. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  7. Back to citation Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Holy Innocents". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  8. Back to citation "General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours, n. 228 and n. 231". Retrieved 2 December 2007.
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  10. Back to citation "Enchiridion Indulgentiarum quarto editur". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  11. Back to citation Divine Worship Daily Office North American Edition. Newman House press. September 2020. p. 70. ISBN 978-1-7330293-2-2.
  12. Back to citation "The Te Deum (cont.)". Musical Musings: Prayers and Liturgical Texts – The Te Deum. CanticaNOVA Publications. Retrieved 7 July 2007.
  13. Back to citation The English translation and chants of Ordination of a Bishop, of Priests, and of Deacons © 2018, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation.
  14. Back to citation To those who have devoutly sung or recited the hymn in a solemn manner inside a church or oratory during the last day of the year to thank God for the benefits received during the past year. Partial indulgence is granted to those who recite it at sunrise or sunset; at the beginning or conclusion of their workday; before or after the spiritual nourishment
  15. Back to citation Enchiridion Indulgentiarum, Concessiones, No. 26, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 4th edition, 2004, p. 71. ISBN 88-209-2785-3.
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  23. Back to citation "Holy God, We Praise Thy Name". Cyberhymnal.org. Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  24. Back to citation Heintze, James R. (1984). American Music Studies: A Classified Bibliography of Master's Theses. Pendragon Press. ISBN 978-0-89990-021-6.
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