"A SOLIS ORTUS CARDINE". - Hymn of the Roman Breviary for Lauds of the feast of Christmas. Its author is Sedulius, a Latin poet of the 5th century. It is the celebration of the birth of the Redeemer, composed in a very elegant form. In elevated tone the poet extols the divine motherhood of the Virgin, the annunciation of the Archangel Gabriel, the visit to St. Elizabeth, the birth in the manger, the joyful announcement of the angels to the shepherds. The lively inspiration is wholly pervaded by the mystery of the Incarnation, and the limpid vein develops the theme almost in the form of a calm pastoral lullaby. Other stanzas of the hymn are used at Vespers of the Epiphany.

Bibliography6 works

BIBL.: C. Albin, La poésie du Bréviaire, I, Lyon n.d., p. 125; G. G. Belli, Inni del Breviario romano tradotti, Rome 1856, pp. 118-19; L. Venturi, Gli inni della Chiesa tradotti e commentati, 3rd ed. Florence, 1880, p. 160; S. Colombo, La poesia cristiana antica, Rome 1910, pp. 156-61; G. Bossi, Gli inni del Breviario romano. Versione ritmica, Rome 1919, p. 77; U. Moricea, Storia della letteratura latina cristiana, III, Turin 1932, p. 58.

Silverio Mattei

@incollection{ec2_a_solis_ortus_cardine, author = {Mattei, Silverio}, title = {A Solis Ortus Cardine}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {II}, pages = {153}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1949}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/a-solis-ortus-cardine} }

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