Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Office Hymns: Memorial Hymns: Of the Angels


Of the Angels

135
O Lord, permit us here to raise our voice

                 
At Matins

O Lord, permit us here to raise our voice;
And waft before Thy throne our feeble praise;
And thank Thee for those Angels whom Thy choice
Hath lent our weakness to direct its ways,
And free us from the envious foes that lurk
To spoil the beauty of Thy cherished work.

At Prime

For Satan, driven from the happy land
Where once he shone in splendor, ill can brook
The kindly justice of the Almighty hand,
That gives to man the throne that he forsook;
And seeks to drag into his own disgrace
Poor mortals thus designed to fill his place. 

At Terce

Bright Spirit! whom a God supremely wise
 Hath given to be the Guardian of this land,
Come, arm'd with all thy power from the skies,
And bear its children harmless in thy hand-----
Safe from all evil that defiles the soul,
Safe from disunion's withering control. 

At Sext

O Jesus! glory of the angelic Choirs,
Light of their brightness, sweetness of their bliss;
Thou Who didst leave a world where nothing tires,
To taste the pains and miseries of this;
Be these same pains, endured to set us free.
The germ of endless happiness with Thee. 

At None

Angel of peace! come, Michael, to our aid,
Thou who didst once chase discord from the sky;
Come, calm those boisterous passions that have made
Such havoc here as they have made on high;
Drive strife and rancor to their kindred gloom,
To Hell, their fitting, their eternal tomb. 

At Evensong

Spirit of might! O Gabriel, display
Thy matchless power against our ancient foes.
Visit those sacred temples where we pray-----
'Twas at thy potent word those temples rose;
Whose worship raised these shrines throughout the earth;
Thou wert the herald of His future birth. 

At Compline

And Raphael! of the glorious seven who stand
 Before the throne of Him Who lives and reigns;
Angel of health! the Lord hath filled thy hand
With balm from Heaven to soothe or cure our pains,
Heal or console the victim of disease,
And guide our steps when doubtful of our ways

No comments:

Post a Comment