«ISTE QUEM LAETI COLIMUS FIDELES».
Hymn for Lauds on the feast of St. Joseph, composed, like the others for the same feast, by Fr. Giovanni della Concezione (Juan Escalar), a Discalced Carmelite, for the office approved by Clement X in 1671 (cf. A. Wilmart, L’hymne Te Joseph celebrent, in Auteurs spirituels et Textes dévots du Moyen âge latin, Paris 1932, pp. 559-70).
In Sapphic stanzas, it begins by alluding to the passage of the holy Patriarch from earthly life to eternal life, assisted by Jesus and Mary, with whom he now enjoys the joy of Paradise. The prayer is inspired by the hope that his merits may procure for us the companionship of Jesus and Mary at the hour of death, the forgiveness of sins, and the same eternal glory.
Bibl.: Belli, pp. 234-35; Terreno, p. 190; Mirra, p. 200.
Silvestro Mattei