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Show 0V KVKHY lloiiian Catholic church and In probably ninety and nine nut uf every hundred Proleatant ehiiri lies throughout Christendom this la the sea-'."'1 sea-'."'1 son when la heatd that grand old hymn whose tender and solemn strains II nd an echo In the universal human heart "Adcsto I'ldeles" (Ciunv, All Ye Knllhfull. It Is the anthem sung at high nines at Christ-maatide Christ-maatide for renturlea past, calling Christ's worshipers to liclhlfhem, where the new-born Bavtor Ilea. Thla naive and beautiful Latin anthem la mote ancient than Ha history, and goes back ail or seven centuries. Balnt Ilotinveutiira, an Italian monk of the thirteenth century, cen-tury, who died In Lyons, France, In 1274, Is credited wltb the authorship of the beginning: Adeste fldelcs, Ijietl trlutnphantea, Venlte, Venlte In Hethlehetn. Natuiu vldete, (legem angulorum. Venlte adoremua, Venlte adorcmus, Venito adorvmua lionilnum. Oh, come all ye faithful, Joyful and triumphant, Oh, come, ye, oh, come ye to Bethlehem. Beo the new-born Baviour, king jot all the angela. Oh, come let ua adore him, Oh, come let ua adore him. Oh, come let us adore him, Chrlat, our lird. Balnt Ilonaventura waa a Frauclacan scholustla phllos- 1 opber, and was suinuiiied "Doiior Heriiphlciie." Ills pre aerved writings are of a dogmatic or didactic nature vs. cliislvely, and thla hymn Is not lo be found among them Doubtless It It to be rcliTied lo the seraphic aide of his genius and temperament, lis classic Latin cadcncca are of audi lytic felicity that one cannot help hut believe thiy were written lo the noble and touching melody on whose wings they have flouted ti r time. Burely this Is not loo fiiniastlc a suggestion, when It Is remembered that the original (ireek music of the Delphic hymn to Apollo Is preserved Intact, and that certain familiar phrases of the (iregurlan chant, used today In Ihe lloiiian mass, are Identllled by Hebrew hlslorlana as the same which were sung in Solomon's temple muny centuries before the time of Chrlat. The hymn "Adeste Fldelcs" la not known to have been used In Kngland earlier than the ecventeciith century. The musical setting, aa we have it In modern notation. Is ascribed by Novello to one John Heading, who waa orgunlat at Willi hester cathedral from 16711 to IBM. and later at Winchester college. Ha reul origin Is lost III tha mists of antiquity which probably far antedntea Ihe middle agea and the Lutlu versus to which It has been Inseparably Insep-arably wedded. Word language, reachca but the one people or race to whom It laSllrectly addressed Hut the language of imialc It unlveraal- It la "iinderstiiiided nf the people" Instautly all the wide world over-It n It not to be written In choice Latin nor translated Into many tonguea It la caught up from tl.e heart and echoes on forever. That la why tho "Adcsto Fldelea" has become the Clirlatmaa hymn of all the world. |