Phos hilaron

This short hymn is probably the oldest in the Christian tradition which does not come directly from scripture. At Orthodox vespers it is used while the lamps and candles are being lit, and is thus sometimes called the Lamp-lighting Hymn. It is included as an invitatory to evening prayer in the US 1979 Book of Common Prayer, but the translation provided is rather weak (although the Church of England’s variant in Common Worship does manage to remove most of the stilted feeling from the Episcopal Church’s original).

Here is my own effort at a translation, which can be sung as Anglican chant (two suggested chant tunes are shown above). An anonymous correspondent also sent me the Gregorian chant for a Latin version of the hymn, which I transcribed from modern notation back into neumes and have attemped to adapt for my English version, but this is a work in progress since I’m not personally very familiar with Gregorian chant notation.

1. O gladsome Light of the ′ holy ′ glory : thou ′ from · the im′mortal ′ Father;
2. holy and ′ heavenly ′ blessed one, : — ′ Jesus ″ Christ!
3. The sunset cometh, we see thy ′ evening ′ light : and we ′ sing our ′ twilight ′ hymn;
4. we praise the Father, ′ and the ′ Son, : and the ′ Holy ′ Ghost, as ′ God.
5. Worthy it is ′ at all ′ times : to ′ praise thee ′ with glad ′ voices;
6. O Son of God, ′ giver of ′ life : so all the ′ world doth ′ glorify ′ thee.

The translation is written to match the general style of the other traditional BCP psalms and canticles and to be said in much the same way. Like ‘Te Deum laudamus’ it does not quite follow the conventions of Hebrew poetry (i.e. it does not neatly divide into parallel clauses at half-verses), but following the example of the ‘Te Deum’ translation in the prayer book, I have divided it as if it does, so it can be sung to plainchant psalm tones as well (I suggest using the first tone). It is also suitable for simple congregational reading, or antiphonal or responsorial use, the minister (or one side of the congregation) reading lines 1, 3, and 5, and the people (or the other side) responding with lines 2, 4, and 6.

Since there is already a trinitarian doxology in the middle, there should be no Gloria Patri afterwards.

I am indebted to the numerous existing translations out there, but especially to John R. Rose’s and his commentary and interlinear gloss on the original. I also like John Keble’s, which is probably the best known translation other than the 1979 one; it also rhymes, which may be useful depending on how you wish to sing.