#ASonnetADay – GUEST POEM from the Requiem Mass – “Dies irae, dies illa, Solvet saeclum in favilla…”

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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3 Comments

  1. Jacob says:

    Father Z, do you have a particular English translation you prefer?

  2. donato2 says:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T7eMctuJLQ

    Very nicely delivered Fr. Z. It’s tough to compete though with how Mozart conceived of delivering the first part of the sequence (see above YouTube clip).

  3. donato2 says:

    I would add that of all the loss resulting from the New Mass’s abandonment of tradition, one of the greatest losses is the stripping out of the Dies Irae sequence from the requiem Mass. The Dies Irae honestly expresses fear of judgment and beautifully balances pleas for mercy with expressions of hope. Many complain of funeral Masses in which the deceased is essentially canonized. The Dies Irae sequence is the perfect antidote to that problem.

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