In the New Testament the hymn note is changed. The centre is a person, not a race. The iforptificat of .Nlary (Luke i. 40-55) is a witness to her talent as a daughter of David. and her piety as a true Israelite. Her song has been much used by the Church, rarely, however, in metrical form. The hest metrical version is that of W. J. Irons. The song of Elizabeth (Luke i. 42-45), sometimes called the lesser Bencdictus, and the song of Zacharias ( Luke i. GS-79), the Bencdiclus, were in use iu the Church as early as the time of Saint Augustine. The Nunc Dimittis of Simeon t Luke ii. 29.32) was used in Christian worship as early as the sixth century. The Gloria in Excelsis of the angels (Luke ii. 14) in its present form appears in the Codex Alcxandrinus of the fourth century, thus proving its early use. The Epistles of Paul con tain hymns. In Colossians iii. 16 we have a reference to the use of Psalms in public worship. Other hymns are found in Ephesians v. 14; 1. Timothy iii. 16; vi. 15-16; II. Timothy ii. 11.13: the parallelism of this last passage is very marked. In the Apocalypse the language is nat urally poetic, and there are several passages which might have been hymns: i. 4-S: v. 9-10, 12-14; xi. 15, 17, 1S; xv. 3, 4; xxi. 10-14; xxii. 17.
One of the earliest references to be found in regard to the worship of the early Church is in the famous letter of Pliny to Trajan (A.D. 103! in these words: "They [the Christians] had been accustomed to come together on a fixed day be fore daylight, and to sing responsively a song to Christ as God." What this song was we do not know. Unfortunately. the first hymn-book of the Church is lost. This book was compiled and largely written by Justin Martyr. It was en titled Psaltes, and is mentioned by Eusebius, Jerome, and Gennadius. The Ante-Nicene Fa thers bear testimony that hymns were used by the Church. We have one hymn entire appended to The Instructor of Clement of Alexandria (e.200 A.D.). It is the earliest Christian hymn extant, and may be Clement's, though by some sup posed to be earlier than his time. It is entitled A Hymn to Christ the Saviour. The hest transla tion is by Dean Plumptre, but the most common ene is by Henry M. Dexter, beginning "Shepherd of tender youth." The next hymn is that amen Honed by Saint Basil (e.330-379) in his treatise On the Spirit, and sometimes called the Candle light Hymn, because sung in church at the lighting of the lamps. It begins "Joyful light of the holy glory." It has been translated many times. The best known translations are those of John Keble and Henry W. Longfellow. The chief Eastern liturgies contain the well-known Clic-7-u Lie Hymn, beginning "Let us who mystically represent the Cherubim." dating from the time of Justinian (527-565). Methodius. who suffered martyrdom in the year 312. composed a hymn which is found in the Banquet of the Ten Virgins (Discourse xi. ch. 2). beginning "Up. maidens. the sound of the cry that raiseth the dead." The Gnostics composed many hymns to further the spread of their doctrines. Valentinus (d. 160) wrote many of the most profound. Bardesanes (d. 223) is said to have composed one hundred
and fifty hymns. His son, llarmonius. was also a writer of hymns. They are sometimes called the fathers of Syrian hymnology. But that honor really belongs to Ephraem Syrus (d. 37S), a poet of no mean order. who wrote to counteract the work of the Gnostics, as a little later Chrysostom (d. 407) did to counteract the work of Arius. With Ambrose (d. 397) begins a great uplift of the art of hymn-writing. To him is attributed the hymn Te Dcum laud/mitts. though probably writ ten in part at least at a much later date. There are ninety-two of the hymns of the Ambre .iami school yet in existence. Ambrose also reformed the mu=ie of the Church. and his form of chant was used until the introduction tar Gregory the Great (d. 604) of the Gregorian chant.
Both Greek anti Latin hymnologists were active during the Middle Age-. In the Greek Church Saint Andrew of Crete (660.732). Saint •John of Damascus (mi. 7s7), and his foster-brother (osmas (d. 760), were followed by the poets of the stadium, Saint Theodore Saint Theophanes (e.S00-850)• and Saint Joseph le. S40 ), the most prolific of them all. The Church is greatly indebted to John Ala-on :Neale G6) for hi- translations from Creek sources. which however, were by no means do-c ; indeed. he great ly improved upon his originals. In time Latin Church _Aurelius Clemens l'rudentius ((l. e.413) was a prolific writer of hymn-. C elius Sedulius (11. 450) was the next writer of note. Ennodius (c.473-521) eomposed a few hymns. Venantius Fortunatu, 600) was a writer of much power. He is best known to us by hi- pa ssiontide hymn Verilla reqis prom/twit. which in the translation of John Chandler begins, "The royal banner is un furled." \\ e are under obligation to Robert II., King of France m (1.1031 m , for Vent, Npiritus ("Conic. Holy spirit"), and three other hymns., The great hymn I cni, ('nator Spiritus i"Uome, Creator spirit") is sometimes attributed to Char lemagne. to Ambrose. Gregory the Great. or , Rabanus Alaurus. The last-named writer did compose hymns of merit, but this is not to be in eluded. Saint Bernard of ('lairvaux (d. 1153) is a name that belongs to the whole Church. He con tributed a long poem on the "Name of Jesus." This contains several passages that have been urea for hymns. Saint Bernard of Cluny ( d. 1156 ) is not so well known personally. yet we can never sing of heaven in the highest strain without using John Mason Neale's translation of a part of his Dc eontemptu mundi. which he called Bernard's Rhythm on the Celestial Country. especially the verses beginning "Jerusalem the golden." Thomas of Celano 1220), the friend of Saint Francis of Assisi. has given us the marvelous judgment hymn Dies Irtr of Wrath"). Saint Thomas Aquinas the Schoolman (d. 1274) wrote Pangr, lingua. qloriosi corporis mystcrium ("Sing, tongue. the mystery of the glorious hotly"). To Jacopone. the Italian Franciscan monk. we owe the Stabat hater ("The Mother [i.e. the Virgin Mary] stood"). These hymns were the principal great hymns before the time of time Reformation.