Songs of the Spirit
A Song of the Holy Spirit
Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179) was the first woman to compose liturgical song for the Western Church. Her chants are preserved in two codices or manuscripts. Below you see a facsimile edition of one, the Dendermonde Codex that Hildegard produced in her Abbey in Rudesheim. She sent it to an Abbey in Belgium where it survived several transfers and wars. It is now preserved in the Abbey of Saints Peter and Paul in Dendermonde, Belgium.
Here you can see the original notation for Hildegard's antiphon 15, De Spiritu Sancto.
A facsimile of the Dendermonde Codex
Antiphon 15
De Spiritu Sancto
Spiritus Sanctus vivificans vita
Movens omnia, et radix est in omni creatura
Ac omnia de immunditia abluit
Tergens crimina, ac laudabilis vita,
Suscitans et resuscitano omnia.
In the early twentieth century, nuns of the Hildegard Abbey in Rudesheim translated Hildegard's songs into German, her vernacular. My English translation here is informed by their rendering of the Latin text into German.
The Holy Spirit is life-giving life,
mover of the universe and root of all created being,
She purges the universe of impurity,
She blots out guilt and anoints wounds,
Thus She is shining life, worthy of praise,
Awakening and reawakening the universe.
Reflection:
Hildegard describes the Spirit as the root of all created being, life-giving life, a Cleanser who purges the universe of impurity, as She expunges guilt and anoints wounds.
What would you ask the Spirit to cleanse, to blot out, or to heal? Pray: Come Holy Spirit!
What would you ask her to awaken, reawaken, or enliven in your soul? Pray: Come Holy Spirit!
Jean Wiebe Janzen wrote a poetic interpretation of this Song of the Spirit. Janzen's work is based on antiphon 15, Hildegard texts in praise of the Spirit. Janzen offers rich images of the Divine as she praises Creation, Incarnation, and Restoration. Her poetry is matched with Sharon Hershey’s lyrical melody supported with lush harmonies, creating a hymn for Communion, Pentecost, and Trinity Sunday. With its musical complexity it can be used as a simple anthem.
O Holy Spirit, root of life VF 55, Echoes track 4
O Holy Spirit, root of life,
Creator, cleanser of all things
Anoint our wounds, awaken us,
with lustrous movement of your wings
Eternal Vigor, saving one,
You free us by your living word
Becoming flesh to wear our pain,
And all creation is restored
O Holy Wisdom, soaring power
Encompass us with wings unfurled
And carry us encircling all
Above, below, and through the world.
Listening:
As you listen to the music imagine the Spirit soaring over you, cleansing, anointing, and restoring. Ask her to encompass you, awaken you, to carry you above, below, and through the world.
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