If Luther retained the ordinary of the mass, in 1526 he nevertheless created a metrical version, the Deutsche Messe, which could be easily sung by ordinary congregations. This is similar to what motivated the non-Lutheran reformers to versify the Psalms. Here is the metrical credo, We All Believe in One True God, which is sung here in the Kaiser-Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche in Berlin:
Here is Michael Praetorius’ arrangement of the Sanctus hymn, Isaiah Mighty Seer in Days of Old. I was unable to find a less ornamented and more straightforward rendition of this tune.
I have never experienced the celebration of Luther’s Deutsche Messe but would love to one day. Perhaps our resident Lutheran, Pastor McCain, could tell us where and when we would be most likely to hear this.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
Ethics of Rhetoric in Times of War
What we say matters. And the way we say it matters. This is especially true in times…
How the State Failed Noelia Castillo
On March 26, Noelia Castillo, a twenty-five-year-old Spanish woman, was killed by her doctors at her own…
The Mind’s Profane and Sacred Loves
The teachers you have make all the difference in your life. That they happened to come into…
