Unless stated otherwise, my source for hymn texts and tunes is The Lutheran Service Book.

Monday, January 3, 2022

Saint-Saëns: Christmas Oratorio, Op. 12: IV. Air et chœur

I've been going through John in the Latin Vulgate, and last week, I stumbled upon what I think is the source for the text in a movement of Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio, Op. 12.  In her conversation with Jesus after Lazarus' death, Martha says, "Utique Domine ego credidi quia tu es Christus Filius Dei qui in mundum venisti" (John 11:27).  In the ESV, this is rendered as:  "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world."

In the fourth movement of Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio, the text is "Domine ego credidi quia tu es Christus Filius Dei vivi qui in hunc mundum venisti."  Aside from "vivi" and "hunc," this matches the verse from John exactly.

Vivi is an adjective (from vivus, viva, vivum) that means "living," so this text seems to incorporate a bit of Matthew 16:16 too:  "Simon Peter replied, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'"

Hunc is a demonstrative adjective.  The Oratorio text is just a bit more specific than John; instead of simply "into the world," it's "into this world."