Te gestientem gaudiis

Here's a neat little explanation of the offertory hymn that we are going to sing on Sunday Oct 7th, Te Gestientiem Gaudiis.

The author of this hymn is Fr. Augustine Thomas Ricchini (1695-1779). A native of Cremona, Italy, he held several ecclesiastical offices and was a friend of Pope Benedict XIV. Fr. Ricchini first held the office of the Secretary of the Congregation of the Index, and then was the Master of the Sacred Palace. He was also an adviser to the Master General of the Dominicans from 1759 to 1778.

This hymn, along with its three companion hymns, Caelestis aulae Nuntius, In monte olivis consito, and Iam morte, victor, obruta are the hymns from the Roman Breviary for the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary (Oct. 7). The hymns were composed by Fr. Ricchini in 1757 and first appeared in the Dominican Breviary. Later, when the present Office was approved for the Universal Church in 1888 by Pope Leo XIII, these four hymns were added to the Roman Breviary. In the current Liturgia Horarum, the only surviving hymn for the feast is now Te gestientem gaudiis, the other three having been deleted.

The Feast of the Most Holy Rosary itself actually goes back to Pope Saint Pius V, who established this feast on the anniversary of the naval victory won by the Christian fleet at Lepanto over the Turkish fleet on 7 Oct., 1571. The victory is attributed to the intercession of the Mother of God, whose aid was petitioned through the prayers of the Rosary before the battle. The celebration of this feast day is an invitation to all to meditate upon the mysteries of Christ, following the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who was so singularly associated with the incarnation, passion, death, and glorious resurrection of her Son, the Son of God.

The subject of all four hymns are the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary. The first three hymns deal with each set of Mysteries: the Joyous, the Sorrowful, and the Glorious. The fourth hymn is a short summary of the first three hymns. This hymn summarizes the themes of the first three hymns, namely the Joyous, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary.

TE gestientem gaudiis, te sauciam doloribus, te iugi amictam gloria, o Virgo Mater, pangimus.	THE gladness of thy Motherhood, the anguish of thy suffering, the glory now that crowns thy brow, O Virgin Mother, we would sing.
Ave, redundans gaudio dum concipis, dum visitas; et edis, offers, invenis, Mater beata, Filium.	Hail, blessed Mother, full of joy in thy consent, thy visit too; joy in the birth of Christ on earth, joy in Him lost and found anew.
Ave, dolens, et intimo in corde agonem, verbera, spinas crucemque Filii perpessa, princeps martyrum.	Hail, sorrowing in His agony the blows, the thorns that pierced His brow; the heavy wood, the shameful Rood Yea! Queen and chief of Martyrs thou.
Ave, in triumphis Filii, in ignibus Paracliti, in regni honore et lumine, Regina fulgens gloria.	Hail, in the triumph of thy Son, the quickening flames of Pentecost; shining a Queen in light serene, when all the world is tempest-tost.
Venite, gentes, carpite ex his rosas mysteriis, et pulchri amoris inclitae Matri coronas nectite.	O come, ye nations, roses bring, culled from these mysteries divine, and for the Mother of your King with loving hands your chaplets twine.
Iesu, tibi sit gloria, qui natus es de Virgine, cum Patre, et almo Spiritu, in sempiterna saecula.	All honor, laud, and glory be, O Jesu, Virgin-born to Thee; All glory, as is ever meet, To Father and to Paraclete.

Latin text from the Roman Breviary, translation by Abbot Oswald Hunter-Blair, abbot of Fort Augustus Abbey, Scotland (1853-1939).

Source: Preces Latinae