Hymns to St. Andrew the Apostle
Lokrantz calls this meter iambic dimeter.
The Apostle Andrew was specially venerated at Fonte Avellana, the hermitage of the Holy Cross. In a document dated 7 July 1072, it is said that Peter Damian (who was then prior of S. Croce in Fonte Avellana) and his lawyer Giovanni de Lito appealed to Beatrice of Tuscany and Matilda of Canossa, countesses and duchess of Spoleto, that they prohibit damage to the assets and properties of the hermitage. These included several churches one of which is the church of S. Andrea in Loreto. This hymn might have been composed especially for that church.
Saint Andrew was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called stems from the Gospel of John, where Andrew, initially a disciple of John the Baptist, follows Jesus and, recognizing him as the Messiah, introduces his brother Simon Peter to him.
Andrew is said to have been martyred by crucifixion at the city of Patras in Achaea, in AD 60. Early texts, such as the Acts of Andrew known to Gregory of Tours (6th century), describe Andrew as bound, not nailed, to a Latin cross of the kind on which Jesus is said to have been crucified; yet a tradition developed that Andrew had been crucified on a cross of the form called crux decussata (X-shaped cross), now commonly known as a “Saint Andrew’s Cross” — supposedly at his own request, as he deemed himself unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross as Jesus. The iconography of the martyrdom of Andrew — showing him bound to an X-shaped cross — does not appear to have been standardized until the later Middle Ages.
Hymnus Sancti Andreae Apostoli (70)
Hymn to St. Andrew the Apostle
1.
Captator olim piscium,
Iam nunc piscator hominum,
Tuis, Andrea, retibus
Mundi nos rape fluctibus.
A one time hunter of fish,
Already now a fisher of men,
Andrew with your net
Seize us with the waves of the world.
2.
Germanus Petri corpore
Nec mortis dispar ordine;
Quos una caro genuit,
Crux caelo fratres edidit.
Brother of Peter in body
Peter’s equal in the way he died;
The cross elevated to heaven the brothers
Whom one flesh brought forth.
3.
O germen vere nobile,
O par corona gloriae!
Ecclesiae patres pii
Crucis sunt aeque filii.
O truly noble offspring,
O equal crown of glory!
They are both pious fathers of the church
They are both equally sons of the cross.
4.
Ad Iesum fratri praevius,
Indexque vitae strenuus,
Et nobis esto miseris
Beati dux itineris.
You, having led the way to Jesus for your brother
And firm guide of your brother’s life
Be the guide to the blessed path
Even for us wretched ones.
5.
Sit patri laus ingenito…
Let there be praise to the unborn…
Hymnus Sancti Andreae Apostoli (71)
Hymn to St. Andrew the Apostle
1.
Andreae festum colitur,
Lux clara piis oritur,
Per quem tenebras deserunt,
Ad verum lumen redeunt.
The festival of Andrew is celebrated,
His bright light rises to the pious ones,
Through whom they are leaving the shadows,
And they return to the true light.
2.
Egeas in apostolum
Minaci frendet spiritu,
Per quem Achaiae populum
Cernit ire post Dominum.
May Aegeas1 gnash his teeth at the
Apostle with a menacing spirit,
Because he sees that through him
The population of Greece is following the Lord.
3.
Nescit minas pavescere,
io Nequit tormentis cedere;
Flammantis ardor fidei
Non sentit vim supplicii.
He does not know to become afraid of threats,
He is unable to yield to tortures;
The blaze of burning faith
Does not feel the force of torture.
4.
Crucis vinctus patibulo
Laetus pendebat biduo;
In ipsa morte positus
Vitae manat eloquium.
Having been bound to the beam of the cross
He happily hung for two days;
Placed in death itself
He exudes the eloquence of life.
5.
Luce delapsa caelitus
Repente circumfunditur;
Qui sic obire meruit,
Lucis auctorem petiit.
The light having glided down from heaven
He is suddenly enveloped by it.
He who deserved to die in this way,
Joined the creator of that light.
6.
Sit patri laus ingenito…
Let there be praise to the unbegotten father…
1 The Roman governor who ordered the crucifixion of Andrew.
