«LUX O DECORA PATRIAE». – Hymn of Lauds in the Office of SS. Cyril and Methodius, composed for the occasion of the extension of their feast to the Universal Church (1880) by the pianist Leonetti, with the addition of a stanza by Salviati, secretary of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, all of it revised by Tripepi and Caporara.
It is an enthusiastic greeting to the two saintly brothers, glory and adornment of their homeland, and Rome, which embraces all peoples and sees her children scattered throughout the entire world, applauds the two Slav evangelizers. It closes with an inspired prayer that they may preserve their land in the faith they so loved. Nobility of thought is matched by classical elegance of form.
Bibl.: Chevalier, p. 61; Albin, pp. 302-306; V. Terreno, Gli inni dell'Ufficio divino, Mondovil 1932, p. 234; Mirra, p. 223. Silverio Mattei