Machine translation of the 1948–1954 Italian original. The original text is authoritative.
« NOX ET TENEBRAE ET NUBILA ». - Hymn of Lauds in the Office for Wednesday.
Taken from the second longest hymn in the Liber Cathemerinon of Prudentius, it is entirely an outburst of joy, for just as with the advancing daylight the darkness of night and its shadows vanish, so before Christ the spiritual darkness vanishes; and just as in the light of the sun all creation is revealed in its beauty, so, illumined by the « Sun who enlightens every man who comes into this world » (Jn 1:9), man can look deep into his own being and purify it by dispelling all darkness and all shadows.
BIBL.: S. G. Pimont, Les hymnes du Bréviaire romain, I, Paris 1874, pp. 200-207; C. Albin, La poésie du Bréviaire, Lyons n.d., pp. 40-51; Moricca, II, pp. 892-98. Silverio Mattei
Cite this article
“NOX ET TENEBRAE ET NUBILA.” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. VIII (1952), p. 1156. Azione Romana digital edition, https://azioneromana.com/article/nox-et-tenebrae-et-nubila.
