« SACRA IAM SPLENDENT DECORATA LYCHNIS ». – Hymn of Matins for the feast of the Holy Family, written by Leo XIII.
After a brief introduction, the poet enters the modest house of Nazareth and describes, in moving little scenes, the humble life led there by the three extraordinary persons who inhabit it after their return from the flight into Egypt. Jesus spends his childhood and youth there, up to the age of 30, helping Joseph in his arduous work, while Mary, an affectionate mother and wife, watches and smiles, reflecting on all that takes place around her.
BIBL.: V. Terreno, Gli inni dell'Ufficio divino, Mondovì 1932, pp. 124–28; A. Moresi, La S. Famiglia di Nazareth, Milan 1934, p. 135; A. Mirra, Gli inni del Breviario rom., Naples 1947, p. 100. Silverio Mattei