Glory to God in the Highest - the Most Important Liturgical Hymn
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory.
Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
This hymn, sung or recited on Sundays and holidays, is found exclusively in the Holy Mass in the Roman Church and in the liturgies of the Milan (Ambrosian) and Mozarabic (or Spanish) rites that depend on it. This text is also called the angel's hymn. Its first words are an exact repetition of the message of the angels addressed to the shepherds in the Bethlehem fields on the occasion of the birth of Christ the Lord. We find these words of the angels in the Gospel of Saint Luke: " Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests" (Lk 2:14).
For this reason, in Christian antiquity, this hymn was performed only on the solemnity of Christmas. “Glory to God” is, next to another hymn: “We praise God” (Te Deum Laudamus), the most famous, sublime liturgical song praising and worshiping the Three-Person God, i.e. the Holy Trinity. This hymn is even considered a jewel of the ancient prayer of the Church. In Christian antiquity, only the bishop was authorized to begin this chant in the liturgy, according to the view that the episcopal and angelic ministry were similar. It was not until the beginning of the second millennium that every celebrant chanted this hymn.
The hymn “Glory to God” is a prayer of praise and thanksgiving by man. We are not asking for anything here. We praise God, we praise him, we thank him - precisely because he is God the Father to us. The first part of the above text is addressed to God the Father. Creation is able to recognize and admit that God is the Creator of all things, that He is Almighty. In turn, the next sentences direct our attention and heart to the person of Jesus Christ, who, with his life, passion and resurrection, takes away the sins of the world, because he is God who "sits at the right hand of the Father". The Holy Spirit, who constantly remains in the "glory of God the Father," is also entitled to worship.
The hymn Glory to God is not sung during Advent and Lent. Absence of this hymn during Advent as a period of waiting for the celebration of Christ's coming to earth announces that it is during the Christmas liturgy that the singing of angels from the Bethlehem fields will sound in a strong and historically justified voice. We recognize similar motivation in the absence of this hymn during Lent. Proclaiming the truth about the resurrection of Christ takes place during the Holy Mass on Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday evening. After hearing the Bible readings only by singing the hymn “Glory to God in the Highest” with the accompaniment of bells, the whole liturgical community participates in the joy of the resurrection of Christ the Lord.
When we worship God, we must go beyond ourselves. This is a conscious action, a journey from the well-known world of thoughts, desires, fears, dreams, and hope into the land of God's Presence.
In the worship of God our eyes are opened. We see more and from a different perspective. We free ourselves from ourselves, but we still return to the old trash that we abandoned for a moment, and come back as a new and changed person.
On the wings of the hymn: "Glory to God," we ascend to the Most High. He is now at the center of our loving attention. He who is the Lord, the Lamb slain for our salvation, the only begotten Son of the Father, taking away sins, the only Holy, Lord, the Supreme, along with the Holy Spirit in the glory of God the Father.
One of the prefaces of the Mass suggests the following words of prayer:
Although you do not need our worship, you support us with your grace to give You thanks. Our praises do not add anything to You but contribute to our salvation through Christ our Lord.
God does not need our honor. He is not a monarch favored by praise. We, however, become poorer without glorifying God. Adoration introduces us to a very specific situation, when we can free ourselves from constant binding, who among us is more important, more venerable, deserved, and dignified. We have a chance to discover the truth that the greatness of each of us is born from His love which bends over us. He is the Eternal Living Love; He loves and cares for His creation.
The Lord, the Only Begotten Son of God, Holy, Crucified Lamb humbles himself to exalt us. This is the secret of the greatness and dignity of man. We learn it by giving glory to the Trinity during the Liturgy. In this way we also regain the glory lost by sin. We become beings who find their happiness in voluntarily accepted dependence on the Creator.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george