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MAJORA
CANAMUS
(Virgil, Eclogue
IV) |
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And without controversy,
great is the Mystery of Godliness: God was manifested in the Flesh,
justified by the Spirit, seen of Angels, preached among the Gentiles,
believed on in the World, received up in Glory
(I Timothy 3 :
16) |
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In whom are hid all the
Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge
(Colossians II : 3)
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PART
ONE : The
prophesy and realization of God's plan to redeem mankind by the coming of
the Messiah |
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Sinfony (Overture)
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Accompagnato (Tenor or Soprano)
Comfort ye,
comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak
ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her
warfare is accomplish'd, that her Iniquity is
pardoned. The voice of him that crieth in the
wilderness; prepare ye the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a
highway for our God.
(Isaiah 40 : 1-3)
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Air (Tenor or
Soprano)
Ev'ry valley
shall be exalted, and ev'ry mountain and hill
made low; the crooked straight, and the rough places plain.
(Isaiah
40 : 4) |
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Chorus
And
the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see together;
for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
(Isaiah 40 :
5) |
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Accompagnato (Bass)
Thus saith the Lord, the
Lord of Hosts; Yet once a little while and I will shake the heav'ns and the earth, the sea and the dry land: And I
will shake all nations; and the desire of all nations shall
come.
(Haggai 2 : 6-7)
The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly
come to His temple, even the messenger of the Covenant, whom ye delight
in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of
Hosts.
(Malachi 3 : 1) |
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Air (Alto)
But who may
abide the day of His coming, and who shall stand when He appeareth? For He is like a refiner's
fire.
(Malachi 3 : 2) |
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Chorus
And
He shall purify the sons of Levi, that they may
offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.
(Malachi 3 :
3) |
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Recitative (Alto)
Behold, a
virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call his name Emmanuel,
GOD WITH US.
(Isaiah 7 : 14; Matthew 1 :
23) |
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Air (Alto) &
Chorus
O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain.
O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it
up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah,
behold your God! O thou that tellest good
tidings to Zion, Arise, shine, for thy Light is
come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.
(Isaiah 40 : 9;
Isaiah 60 : 1) |
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Accompagnato (Bass)
For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross
darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory
shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and
kings to the brightness of thy rising.
(Isaiah 60 :
2-3) |
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Air (Bass)
The people
that walked in darkness have seen a great light; and they that dwell in
the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light
shined.
(Isaiah 9 : 2) |
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Chorus
For
unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall
be upon His shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace.
(Isaiah 9 :
6) |
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Pifa
(Sinfonia pastorale) |
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Recitative (Soprano)
There were
shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by
night.
(Luke 2 : 8) |
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Accompagnato (Soprano)
And lo, the
angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round
about them, and they were sore afraid.
(Luke 2 :
9) |
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Recitative (Soprano)
And the
angel said unto them: Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
(Luke 2 :
10-11) |
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Accompagnato (Soprano)
And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of
the heavenly host, praising God, and saying:
(Luke 2 :
l3) |
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Chorus
Glory
to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will towards
men.
(Luke 2 : 14) |
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Air (Soprano or
Tenor)
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold,
thy King cometh unto thee; He is the righteous Saviour, and He shall speak peace unto the
heathen.
(Zecharaiah 9 :
9-10) |
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Recitative (Soprano)
Then shall
the eyes of the blind be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then
shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the
tongue of the dumb shall sing.
(Isaiah 35 :
5-6) |
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Aria (Soprano)
He shall
feed His flock like a shepherd; and He shall gather the lambs with His
arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those that are with
young.
(Isaiah 40 : 11)
Come unto Him, all ye that labour, come unto Him that are heavy laden, an He will give you rest. Take His yoke upon you, and
learn of Him, for He is meek and lowly of heart, and ye shall find rest
unto your souls.
(Matthew 11 :
28-29) |
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Chorus
His
yoke is easy, and his burden is light.
(Matthew 11 :
30) |
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PART TWO : The accomplishment of
redemption by the sacrifice of Jesus, mankind's rejection of God's offer,
and mankind's utter defeat when trying to oppose the power of the
Almighty
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Chorus
Behold the Lamb of God, that
taketh away the sin of the world.
(John 1
: 29) |
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Air (Alto)
He was
despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief.
(Isaiah 53 : 3)
He gave His back to the smiters, and His cheeks to them that plucked off the
hair: He hid not His face from shame and spitting.
(Isaiah 50 :
6) |
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Chorus
Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows! He was wounded for
our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of
our peace was upon Him.
(Isaiah 53 :
4-5) |
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Chorus
And
with His stripes we are healed.
(Isaiah 53 :
5) |
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Chorus
All
we, like sheep, have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way,
and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
(Isaiah 53 :
6) |
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Accompagnato (Tenor or Soprano)
All they that see Him laugh Him to scorn; they shoot
out their lips, and shake their heads, saying:
(Psalms 22 :
7) |
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Chorus
He
trusted in God that He would deliver Him; let Him deliver Him, if He delight in Him.
(Psalms 22 :
8) |
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Accompagnato (Tenor or Soprano)
Thy rebuke
hath broken His heart: He is full of heaviness. He looked for some to have
pity on Him, but there was no man, neither found He any to comfort Him.
(Psalms 69 :
20) |
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Arioso (Tenor or
Soprano)
Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto His
sorrow.
(Lamentations 1 : 12) |
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Accompagnato (Tenor or Soprano)
He was cut
off out the land of the living: for the transgressions of Thy people was
He stricken.
(Isaiah 53 : 8) |
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Air (Tenor or
Soprano)
But Thou didst not leave His soul in hell; nor didst
Thou suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption.
(Psalms 16 :
10) |
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Chorus
Lift
up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and
the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord
strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye
gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of Glory
shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the
King of Glory.
(Psalms 24 : 7-10) |
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Recitative (Tenor or
Soprano)
Unto which of the angels said He at any time: Thou
art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee?
(Hebrews 1 :
5) |
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Chorus
Let
all the angels of God worship Him.
(Hebrews 1 :
6) |
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Air
(Alto)
Thou art gone up on high;
Thou hast led captivity captive, and received gifts for men; yea, even
from Thine enemies, that the Lord God might
dwell among them.
(Psalms 68 : 18) |
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Chorus
The
Lord gave the word; great was the company of the preachers.
(Psalms
68 : 11) |
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Air (Soprano)
How
beautiful are the feet of them: that preach the gospel of peace, and bring
glad tidings of good things.
(Romans 10 :
15) |
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Chorus
Their
sound is gone out into all lands, and their words unto the ends of the
world.
(Romans 10 : 18 / Psalms 19 :
4) |
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Air (Bass)
Why do the
nations so furiously rage together, and why do the people imagine a vain
thing? The kings of the earth rise up, and the
rulers take counsel together against the Lord, and against His
Anointed.
(Psalms 2 : 1-2) |
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Chorus
Let
us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their yokes from
us.
(Psalms 2 : 3) |
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Recitative (Tenor)
He that
dwelleth in heaven shall laugh them to scorn;
the Lord shall have them in derision.
(Psalms 2 :
4) |
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Air (Tenor)
Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's
vessel.
(Psalms 2 : 9) |
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Chorus
Hallelujah! for the Lord God
Omnipotent reigneth.
(Revelation 19 :
6)
The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and
of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.
(Revelation 11
: 15)
King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
(Revelation 19 :
16)
Hallelujah! |
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PART THREE : A Hymn of Thanksgiving for
the final overthrow of Death
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Air (Soprano)
I know that
my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at
the latter day upon the earth. And though worms destroy this body, yet in
my flesh shall I see God.
(Job 19 : 25-26)
For now is Christ
risen from the dead, the first fruits of them that sleep.
(I
Corinthians 15 : 20) |
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Chorus
Since
by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as
in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
(I Corinthians 15 : 21-22)
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Accompagnato (Bass)
Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at
the last trumpet.
(I Corinthians 15 :
51-52) |
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Air (Bass)
The trumpet
shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be
changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal
must put on immortality.
(I Corinthians 15 :
52-53) |
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Recitative (Alto)
Then shall
be brought to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in
victory.
(I Corinthians 15 : 54) |
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Duet (Alto/Tenor)
O death,
where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory The sting of death is
sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
(I Corinthians 15 :
55-56) |
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Chorus
But
thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
(I Corinthians 15 :
57) |
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Air (Soprano)
If God be
for us, who can be against us?
(Romans 8 : 31)
Who shall lay
anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that
is risen again, who is at the right hand of God,
who makes intercession for us.
(Romans 8 :
33-34) |
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Chorus
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed
us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and
strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
Blessing and honour, glory and power, be unto
Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the
Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen.
(Revelation 5 :
12-13) |