Gloria Patri for Introit and Assorted Responsory Verses

 The Gloria Patri in different tones as sung for the Introit; also, assorted Responsory Verses and Gloria Patri's in different tones; I uploaded them to google drive; all in English. 

Gloria Patri for Introit

Responsory Verses

Introit "Ad Te levavi"

 I have converted the pdf files to jpegs in order to post them in this post as image files.  

Introit "Ad Te levavi":

 

 

Introit Trope "Sanctissimus Namque" in English for First Sunday in Advent

"Sanctissimus nameque" is an Introit Trope that acts as a sort of an introduction to the Introit for tomorrow's First Sunday in Advent; it describes the events of St. Gregory the Great praying for enlightenment from the Holy Ghost in composing chant work.  I have the file in pdf, but have used a pdf to jpeg converter to turn it into an image file.

Holy Martyr-King Edmund of East Anglia (+869)

 

"If I die, I live." -- St. King Edmund the Martyr (+869)

Today is the Feast of the Holy Martyr and King, Edmund of East Anglia. 

As the heathen army of the Danes invaded his Kingdom, and approached where the Holy King resided, few options seemed open to the King.  Either he submit his Kingdom to slavery in order to preserve himself, or he flee.  Abbot Aelfric of Eynsham, translated in a brief and paraphrastic form the longer "Passion of St. Edmund" (composed by Abbo of Fleury in the late 10th century, in concord with St. Dunstan of Canterbury); in which we find the following:

"Then King Edmund summoned a certain Bishop with whom he was most intimate, and deliberated with him how he should answer the fierce Ivar.  The Bishop was afraid because of this emergency, and he feared for the King's life, and counselled him that he thought that Edmund should submit to what Ivar asked of him.  Then the King became silent, and looked at the ground, and then said to him at last:  'Alas, Bishop, the poor people of this country are already shamefully afflicted.  I would rather died fighting so that my people might continue to possess their native land.'  The Bishop said: 'Alas, beloved King, thy people lie slain.  You do not have the troops that you may fight, and the pirates come and kidnap the living.  Save your life by flight, or save yourself by submitting to him.'  Then said King Edmund, since he was completely brave: 'This I heartily wish and desire, that I not be the only survivor after my beloved thegns are slain in their beds with their children and wives by these pirates.  It was never my way to flee.  I would rather die for my country if I need to.  Almighty God knows that I will not ever turn from worship of Him, nor from love of His truth.  If I die, I live." 

Friends, the Holy Martyr speaks as a true Christian; who is not reminded of St. Paul's words: "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Phil. 1:21) 

As well as the same Holy Apostle's words to the Romans: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, 'For Thy Sake we are killed all the day long; we are account as sheep for the slaughter.'  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus Our Lord." (Rom. 8:35-39)

To read Abbot Aelfric of Eynsham's edition of the Martyrdom of St. Edmund in full, one may go here:

https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/870abbo-edmund.asp

To read the longer version, from which Abbot Aelfric took his account, that is Abbot of Fleury's, one may go here:

https://torrencia.org/edmund/lattrans.html

Conciliar Condemnation of Iconoclasm before Seventh Ecumenical Council

    It would be incorrect to assert that there were not a series of Councils held by Bishops which condemned Iconoclasm prior to the Seventh Ecumenical Council of 787 (i.e. the Second Council of Nicea).  In fact, almost as soon as the heresy arose, condemnations of the heresy, not just by individuals, but by Synods transpired.  Let us give a few examples below. 

    In the 720s, Emperor Leo III the Isaurian published edicts ordering the removal and destruction of iconography, in league with heretical bishops; this was opposed by Patriarch St. Germanus.  However, Patriarch St. Germanus was expelled by the heretics, and in his place the Pseudo-Patriarch Anastasius, a supporter of iconoclasm, was put in his place.  This called forth massive resistance, breaking of communion, and the eventual anathematization of iconoclasm in a formalized setting at the 731 Synod of Rome.  The 8th Century Liber Pontificalis contains the following entries relevant to this, first beginning with Pope St. Gregory II.  

"Romano-German" Pontifical in Anglo-Saxon England

 

A digitized edition of the so-called "Romano-German Pontifical" that was used in 11th century England can be found here.  This specific Pontifical is generally considered of a type that was formed in 10th century Mainz, but, which, gradually, acquired a wider usage alongside other Pontificals [a 'Pontifical' in this context meaning a Book that contains services which a Bishop performs].  The description on the Cambridge website is as thus: 

"CCCC MS 163 contains a Pontifical of the Romano-Germanic type.  It was written in the second half of the eleventh century, probably at Worcester, although the Old Minster and the Nunnaminster at Winchester have both also been suggested.  In text it is closely related to London, BL MS Cotton Vitellius E. XII, and may even have been directly copied from it.  The Romano-Germanic Pontifical originated in the tenth century and spread rapidly because it brought together a comprehensive set of texts for performing the duties of a bishop.  These two English copies seem to descend from a Cologne manuscript, and it has been suggested that the line of transmission was Bishop Ealdred's visit to Cologne in 1054.  Ealdred, Bishop of Worcester and later Archbishop of Canterbury, was sent by Edward the Confessor on a diplomatic mission to Henry II, probably leading to the return to England of Edward the Exile in 1057, and it seems likely that he acquired a text of the Romano-Germanic Pontifical on this occasion.  MS 163 contains four ordines for the consecration of women while omitting all those for abbots and monks, and may therefore have some connection with the nunnery." 

There is a minor correction that must be made to the above; Ealdred became Archbishop of York, not Archbishop of Canterbury.  That it may have a connection with the Nunnaminster, or womens' convent of St. Mary's is interesting; as it says, it contains text for the 'consecration of women' [i.e. consecration / sanctification / making of nuns], but not the consecration of monks.  

Bishop's Vesting Prayer for Dalmatic

 

In the 9th Century Ratoldus Sacramentary, we have an example of the vesting prayers of a Bishop.  It contains rubrics for the Bishop and his ministers at the Vesting.  For the Dalmatic, we have the following:

"Therefore, Over these [i.e. previous vestments] is the blue tunic ministered to him with the small bells around the hem; and the minister says as above [i.e. asking a blessing].  The Bishop responds: 'Sanctify this tunic with which I am now clothed, O Almighty Eternal God, without Whose help no human power is able to prevail, and Who hast willed me to wear the sacred vestments, do Thou give me a faithful mind to serve Thee, O Loving Judge. Through all the ages of ages. Amen." 

The Latin would be:

"Super haec itaque ministretur ei tunica gyris in tintinabulis myrice refecta.  Et dicat minister ut supra.  Respondet episcopus: 'Sanctifica tunicam qua nunc superinduor istam, Omnipotens Aeterne Deus, sine numine cuius, nil humana talet devoti condere virtus, et qui me sacris voluisti vestibus uti, da servire tibi iudex pie mente fideli. Per omnia.." [pg. 237 of the "Sacramentary of Ratoldus" as published by the Henry Bradshaw Society] 

We can learn a few things from this; one of which is that the Dalmatic [referred to simply as a 'tunica' [though, from the context, in the section, which isn't reproduced all the way here, it is clearly not referred to the tunicle], was blue, and had a number of bells attached to it.  Of course, the true and inner spiritual meaning for an Orthodox Christian is that the Bishop should rely upon the power of God to help him, and that it is God Who sanctifies and clothes the Bishop in the Priesthood; the Sacerdotal Order is not the property of men, but, truly of God who clothes men with it!