For your Reformation celebration, here is a Latin translation of Luther’s great hymn, Ein feste Burg (“A Mighty Fortress”). Translated by Buttmann, a German philologist, it can be sung to the same tune as Luther’s original. According to this source the Latin version was first published in 1830 to commemorate the Augsburg Confession (1530).
Arx firma [...]
Let ev’ry race and ev’ry language tell
Of Him who saves our lives from death and hell (LSB 837, stz. 5).
This includes Latin, as I believe. I promised that I would list some resources for praying the offices in Latin from Lutheran sources. The list below is incomplete, as I am still myself figuring this whole [...]
It’s important to pray in Latin. It’s Lutheran to pray in Latin. Of these two propositions I am thoroughly convinced.
There are many reasons why I think it important to pray in Latin, but primarily I will speak now about its didactic function. You see, language, if it is to be truly language, must be used. [...]
Sed non dubium est praecipuam causam [cur Deus Musicen fecerit] esse, ut doctrina de Deo carminibus comprehensa propagari latius possit et diutius conseruari…Nec profecto quidquam dulcius est homini non monstroso, quam doctrina uerbis recte illustrata, quae bonis harmoniis ad aures atque animos profertur…Haec cum ita sint, laudanda est uoluntas artificum, qui tales Melodias utiles docendis [...]
Just a quick note again on the O Antiphons. They really seem to be quite popular this year (especially around the blogosphere). Actually, they seem to have gained a lot of popularity over the past several years. In fact, last year my fieldwork congregation did a whole Advent series on them (they spread them out [...]
Here is a great site for those of us wishing to learn how to chant the O Antiphons. These handy You-Tube videos show the chant along with audio to help you practice.