REVIEW: Mark A. Lamport, Benjamin K. Forrest, Vernon M. Whaley, "Hymns and Hymnody: Historical and Theological Introductions. Volume 1: From Asia Minor to Western Europe" (original) (raw)
Related papers
Estudios Bizantinos , 2024
Religious poetry is one of the great representatives of Byzantine literature. Within the poetic sphere is the genre of hymnography, whose greatest exponent is a type of hymn known as kon-takion. Since the first editions of kontakia in the 19th century, brief studies of certain aspects of this type of hymn have appeared, but they have all been published in a scattered manner, and the scholarly interest has generally focused on the hymnographers rather than on the hymnic genre itself. The purpose of this article is to provide an update of the existing bibliographical material and to offer a diachronic overview of the history of hymnography. This study is original in its synoptic character, bringing together the various aspects of the hymn, from its origins to its apogee, which have often been studied separately.
Greek Christian Poetry and Hymnography (2):
Oxford Handbook to the Early Church
Greek Christian hymns are a massive part of the surviving literary record of the early church, but have rarely attracted the level of scholarly attention that they deserve. This article discusses Greek hymnody; the classical origins of the Greek Christian hymns; the Bible and the ancient liturgy; stages of Syrian influence on Byzantine hymnography; hymns of the heterodox-orthodox Struggles; littérateur poets in Greek late antiquity; and the flowering of Byzantine hymnography in the sixth to eleventh Centuries. In Greek hymnody, one can see creed, antiphon, poem, prayer, song, and sacrament welded to form a seamless unity: here Byzantine theology, mysticism, and liturgical chant merge into a profound symbiosis in a programme that already consciously understood itself to be a the ology of beauty and of culture. The ancient hymn is thus a potent symbol, still awaiting its full articulation.
Eastern Christian Hymnody between Liturgical Theology and Ritual Studies
2023
This course has three foci: Liturgical Theology, Ritual Theory, and Eastern Christian hymnody (primarily Syriac and Greek). Conceptually, its aim is to assess the current states of liturgical theology and ritual theory in themselves and as they relate to (as well as fight against) one another. Historically and textually, its aim is to lead students through the formative hymnic voices of the late antique eastern Christian world (especially, Ephrem, Jacob, Narsai, and Romanos) and the liturgical contexts in which they operated. A central question will be how late antique hymnic sources can speak to movements in ritual studies and liturgical theology, and how those discourses can in turn inform readings of late antique hymnody. Students will be allowed and encouraged to set the agenda for certain aspects of the seminar, bringing in additional hymnic, ritual, and liturgical materials that move us beyond late antique Greek and Syriac (e.g., later Latin, Greek, Arabic, Armenian).
A Study of Christadelphian Hymnody " Singing with the spirit and with the understanding "
The purpose of this study is to examine and define what is considered to be sacred music in Christadelphian worship by comparing Christadelphian ideas about music with the actual practice of music as demonstrated in written historical sources and in contemporary performance practices. Christadelphian music is made up of mainly hymns, anthems, psalms and contemporary songs. An expression that Christadelphians favour in describing how music is to be used is taken from the Bible, in 1 Corinthians 14 verse 15: “to sing with the spirit and to sing with the understanding”. This is a Christadelphian ideal that has been used to justify many editorial decisions and performance practices. Up to ninety percent of the music used has been sourced from other religions, but the Christadelphians have adapted the pieces to suit their purposes. At various times, fourteen different hymn books have been developed for use in English speaking countries, with some being accepted and some rejected for social and religious reasons. In the first seven chapters, the history of the various hymnals are outlined, including issues that arose in the publication of these and how they were used in the community. The eighth chapter examines views on music that have been published separately to the views contained in the hymn book prefaces and how music is used today in Christadelphianism. The thesis follows the history of Christadelphian hymns, including where hymns have been borrowed from, as well as the music and text of Christadelphian origins. This history is presented in light of the development of Christadelphian society and how certain religious values affect the choice and presentation of their music, including performance practices. Indexes with hymn text and tune headings are provided in the appendix of all Christadelphian compositions published and can be cross referenced with each other. Finally all issues presented in this thesis are linked to the Christadelphian ideal of singing with the spirit and understanding to show how this is practiced in current congregations.