Title: Sing Praises to God Source:
[None] URL Source:[None] Published:Oct 31, 2014 Author:group sharing Post Date:2014-10-31 15:31:47 by Orthodoxa Keywords:favorite hymns Views:9328 Comments:25
Post some of your favorite hymns to God.
To get things started, here is Fr. Seraphim bit-Karibi leading a few members of his flock in singing the Trisagion Hymn in an unfinished Church building that is being built in the country of Georgia. Although in Georgia, they are Assyrian Orthodox and singing in Aramaic -- the language of Jesus Christ when he was Incarnate among us.
A translation of the hymn in English:
"Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us!"
To give one clear example of the fact that Jesus spoke Aramaic (He undoubtable know some Hebrew and Greek as well) were His words spoken on the Cross:
" Eloi Eloi lema sabactani"
That is not Hebrew. It is the beginning of Psalm 22 in Aramaic. The fact that He used Aramaic when he was quoting the Bible on the Cross itself says a lot.
The discussion brought to mind another of my favorite hymns of the Church year.
This is from Holy Week in the Orthodox Church. At the beginning of the video, you can hear one of the accounts of Christ's crucifixion being read in the original Greek and Aramaic, and it is followed by one of the most moving and solemn hymns that I have ever heard.
The hymn contrasts the fact that the Creator of the universe allows himself to be tortured to death by his own creatures.
"A crown of thorns is placed upon the head of the King of Angels"
"He is wrapped in purple robes of mockery who covered the heavens with clouds."
"He who fed His people manna in the wilderness is given vinegar to drink."
"He is slapped upon the face by hands that He himself created."
