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Mitten wir im Leben sind
Author: Martin Luther Appears in 49 hymnals Used With Tune: [Mitten wir im Leben sind]
Mitten wir im Leben sind
MITTEN WIR IN LEBEN SIND
Appears in 16 hymnals Tune Sources: Salzburg, 1456; Johann Walter, 1524 Tune Key: e minor or modal Incipit: 33456 65456 74312 Used With Text: Wpośród życia, jednak
MITTEN WIR IN LEBEN SIND
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Author: Martin Luther Hymnal: Antwort Finden in alten und neuen Liedern, in Worten zum Nachdenken und Beten #518 (2014) Lyrics: 1 Mitten wir im Leben sind
mit dem Tod umfangen.
Wer ist, der uns Hilfe bringt,
daß wir Gnad erlangen?
Das bist du, Herr, alleine.
Uns reuet unsre Missetat,
die dich, Herr, erzürnet hat.
Heiliger Herre Gott,
heiliger starker Gott,
heiliger barmherziger Heiland,
du ewiger Gott:
laß uns nicht versinken
in des bittern Todes Not.
Kyrieleison.
2 Mitten in dem Tod anficht
uns der Hölle Rachen.
Wer will uns aus solcher Not
frei und ledig machen?
Das tust du, Herr, alleine.
Es jammert dein Barmherzigkeit
unsre Klag und großes Leid.
Heiliger Herre Gott,
heiliger starker Gott,
heiliger barmherziger Heiland,
du ewiger Gott:
Lass uns nicht verzagen
vor der tiefen Hölle Glut.
Kyrieleison.
3 Mitten in der Hölle Angst
unsre Sünd' uns treiben.
Wo solln wir denn fliehen hin,
da wir mögen bleiben?
Zu dir, Herr Christ, alleine.
Vergossen ist dein teures Blut,
das g'nug für die Sünde tut.
Heiliger Herre Gott,
heiliger starker Gott,
heiliger barmherziger Heiland,
du ewiger Gott:
Laß uns nicht entfallen
von des rechten Glaubens Trost.
Kyrieleison. Topics: Glaube - Liebe - Hoffnung Sterben und Ewiges Leben Languages: German Tune Title: [Mitten wir im Leben sind]
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Author: Martin Luther Hymnal: Sammlung Kirchlicher Lieder #I.3 (1912) Languages: German Tune Title: [Mitten wir im Leben sind]
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Author: Martin Luther Hymnal: Gesangbuch der Evangelisch-reformierten Kirchen der deutschsprachigen Schweiz #295 (1952) Languages: German Tune Title: [Mitten wir im Leben sind]
Mitten wir im Leben sind
Martin Luther
1483 - 1546 Author (st. 2-3) of "Mitten wir im Leben sind" in Antwort Finden in alten und neuen Liedern, in Worten zum Nachdenken und Beten Luther, Martin, born at Eisleben, Nov. 10, 1483; entered the University of Erfurt, 1501 (B.A. 1502, M.A.. 1503); became an Augustinian monk, 1505; ordained priest, 1507; appointed Professor at the University of Wittenberg, 1508, and in 1512 D.D.; published his 95 Theses, 1517; and burnt the Papal Bull which had condemned them, 1520; attended the Diet of Worms, 1521; translated the Bible into German, 1521-34; and died at Eisleben, Feb. 18, 1546. The details of his life and of his work as a reformer are accessible to English readers in a great variety of forms. Luther had a huge influence on German hymnody.
i. Hymn Books.
1. Ellich cristlich lider Lobgesang un Psalm. Wittenberg, 1524. [Hamburg Library.] This contains 8 German hymns, of which 4 are by Luther.
2. Eyn Enchiridion oder Handbuchlein. Erfurt, 1524 [Goslar Library], with 25 German hymns, of which 18 are by Luther.
3. Geystliche Gesangk Buchleyn. Wittenberg, 1524 [Munich Library], with 32 German hymns, of which 24 are by Luther.
4. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1529. No copy of this book is now known, but there was one in 1788 in the possession of G. E. Waldau, pastor at Nürnberg, and from his description it is evident that the first part of the Rostock Gesang-Buch, 1531, is a reprint of it. The Rostock Gesang-Buch, 1531, was reprinted by C. M. Wiechmann-Kadow at Schwerin in 1858. The 1529 evidently contained 50 German hymns, of which 29 (including the Litany) were by Luther.
5. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Erfurt. A. Rauscher, 1531 [Helmstädt, now Wolfenbüttel Library], a reprint of No. 4.
6. Geistliche Lieder. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1535 [Munich Library. Titlepage lost], with 52 German hymns, of which 29 are by Luther.
7. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Leipzig. V. Schumann, 1539 [Wernigerode Library], with 68 German hymns, of which 29 are by Luther.
8. Geistliche Lieder. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1543 [Hamburg Library], with 61 German hymns, of which 35 are by Luther.
9. Geystliche Lieder. Leipzig. V. Babst, 1545 [Gottingen Library]. This contains Luther's finally revised text, but adds no new hymns by himself. In pt. i. are 61 German hymns, in pt. ii. 40, of which 35 in all are by Luther.
For these books Luther wrote three prefaces, first published respectively in Nos. 3, 4, 9. A fourth is found in his Christliche Geseng, Lateinisch und Deudsch, zum Begrebnis, Wittenberg, J. Klug, 1542. These four prefaces are reprinted in Wackernagel’s Bibliographie, 1855, pp. 543-583, and in the various editions of Luther's Hymns. Among modern editions of Luther's Geistliche Lieder may be mentioned the following:—
Carl von Winterfeld, 1840; Dr. C. E. P. Wackernagel, 1848; Q. C. H. Stip, 1854; Wilhelm Schircks, 1854; Dr. Danneil, 1883; Dr. Karl Gerok, 1883; Dr. A. F. W. Fischer, 1883; A. Frommel, 1883; Karl Goedeke, 1883, &c. In The Hymns of Martin Luther. Set to their original melodies. With an English version. New York, 1883, ed. by Dr. Leonard Woolsey Bacon and Nathan H. Allen, there are the four prefaces, and English versions of all Luther's hymns, principally taken more or less altered, from the versions by A. T. Russell, R. Massie and Miss Winkworth [repub. in London, 1884]. Complete translations of Luther's hymns have been published by Dr. John Anderson, 1846 (2nd ed. 1847), Dr. John Hunt, 1853, Richard Massie, 1854, and Dr. G. Macdonald in the Sunday Magazine, 1867, and his Exotics, 1876. The other versions are given in detail in the notes on the individual hymns.
ii. Classified List of Luther's Hymns. Of Luther's hymns no classification can be quite perfect, e.g. No. 3 (see below) takes hardly anything from the Latin, and No. 18 hardly anything from the Psalm. No. 29 is partly based on earlier hymns (see p. 225, i.). No. 30 is partly based on St. Mark i. 9-11, and xvi., 15, 16 (see p. 226, ii.). No. 35 is partly based on St. Luke ii. 10-16. The following arrangement, however, will answer all practical purposes.
A. Translations from the Latin.
i. From Latin Hymns:
1. Christum wir sollen loben schon. A solis ortus cardine
2. Der du bist drei in Einigkeit. O Lux beata Trinitas.
3. Jesus Christus unser Heiland, Der von. Jesus Christus nostra salus
4. Komm Gott Schopfer, heiliger Geist. Veni Creator Spiritus, Mentes.
5. Nun komm der Beidenheiland. Veni Redemptor gentium
6. Was flirchst du Feind Herodes sehr. A solis ortus cardine
ii. From Latin Antiphons, &c.:
7. Herr Gott dich loben wir. Te Deum laudamus.
8. Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich. Dapacem, Domine
9. Wir glauben all an einen Gott.
iii. Partly from the Latin, the translated stanzas being adopted from Pre-Reformation Versions:
10. Komm, heiliger Geist, Herre Gott.
11. Mitten wir im Leben sind. Media vita in morte sumus.
B. Hymns revised and enlarged from Pre-Reformation popular hymns.
12. Gelobet seist du Jesus Christ.
13. Gott der Vater wohn uns bei.
14. Gott sei gelobet und gebenedeiet.
15. Nun bitten wir den heiligen Geist.
C. Psalm versions.
16. Ach Gott vom Himmel, sieh darein.
17. Aus tiefer Noth schrei ich zu dir.
18. Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott.
19. Es spricht der Unweisen Mund wohl.
20. Es wollt uns Gott genädig sein.
21. War Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit.
22. Wohl dem, der in Gotten Furcht steht.
D. Paraphrases of other portions of Holy Scripture.
23. Diess sind die heilgen zehn Gebot.
24. Jesaia dem Propheten das geschah.
25. Mensch willt du leben seliglich.
26. Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin.
27. Sie ist mir lieb die werthe Magd.
28. Vater unser im Himmelreich.
E. Hymns mainly Original.
29. Christ lag in Todesbanden.
30. Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam.
31. Ein neues Lied wir heben an.
32. Erhalt uns Herr bei deinem Wort.
33. Jesus Christus unser Heiland, Der den,
34. Nun freut euch lieben Christengemein.
35. Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her.
36. Vom Himmel kam der Engel Schaar.
In addition to these —
37. Fur alien Freuden auf Erden.
38. Kyrie eleison.
In the Blätter fur Hymnologie, 1883, Dr. Daniel arranges Luther's hymns according to what he thinks their adaptation to modern German common use as follows:—
i. Hymns which ought to be included in every good Evangelical hymn-book: Nos. 7-18, 20, 22, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 38.
ii. Hymns the reception of which into a hymn-book might be contested: Nos. 2, 3, 4, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 33.
iii. Hymns not suited for a hymn-book: Nos. 1, 5, 6, 27, 31, 37.
[Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
Martin Luther
Johann Walter
1496 - 1570 Adapter of "[Mitten wir im Leben sind]" in Antwort Finden in alten und neuen Liedern, in Worten zum Nachdenken und Beten Johann Walther (b. Kahla, Thuringia, Germany, 1496: d. Torgau, Germany, 1570) was one of the great early influences in Lutheran church music. At first he seemed destined to be primarily a court musician. A singer in the choir of the Elector of Saxony in the Torgau court in 1521, he became the court's music director in 1525. After the court orchestra was disbanded in 1530 and reconstituted by the town, Walther became cantor at the local school in 1534 and directed the music in several churches. He served the Elector of Saxony at the Dresden court from 1548 to 1554 and then retired in Torgau.
Walther met Martin Luther in 1525 and lived with him for three weeks to help in the preparation of Luther's German Mass. In 1524 Walther published the first edition of a collection of German hymns, Geystliche gesangk Buchleyn. This collection and several later hymnals compiled by Walther went through many later editions and made a permanent impact on Lutheran hymnody.
Bert Polman
================
Walther, Johann, was born in 1496 at a village near Cola (perhaps Kahla, or else Colleda, near Sachsenburg) in Thuringia. In 1524 we find him at Torgau, as bassist at the court of Friedrich the Wise, Elector of Saxony. The Elector Johann of Saxony made him "Sengermeister" (choirmaster) in 1526. When the Electoral orchestra (Kapelle) at Torgau was disbanded in 1530, it was reconstituted by the town, and in 1534 Walther was also appointed cantor (singing-master) to the school at Torgau. On the accession of the Elector Moritz of Saxony, in 1548, Walther went with him to Dresden as his Kapellmeister. He was pensioned by decree of Aug. 7, 1554, and soon after returned to Torgau, still retaining the title of "Sengermeister." He died at Torgau, perhaps on March 25, or at least before April 24, 1570. (Monatshefte für Musikgeschichte, 1871, p. 8, and 1878, p. 85; Archiv für Litteraturgeschichte, vol. xii., 1884, p. 185; Dr. Otto Taubert's Pflege der Musilz in Torgau, 1868, and his Gymnasial Singe-Chor zu Torgau, n.d., 1870, &c.)
Walther was more distinguished as a musician than as a hymnwriter. In 1524 he spent three weeks in Luther's house at Wittenberg, helping to adapt the old church music to the Lutheran services, and harmonising the tunes in five parts for the Geystliche gesangk Bucklyn, published at Wittenberg in 1524. He was also present in the Stadtkirche at Wittenberg, when, on Oct. 29, 1525, the service for the Holy Communion, as rearranged by Luther and himself, was first used in German. His hymns appeared mostly in his Das christlich Kinderlied D. Martini Lutheri, Erhalt uns Herr, &c. Auffs new in sechs Stimmen gesetzt, und rait etlichen schönen Christlichen Texten, Lateinischen und Teutschen Gesengen gemehrt, &c, Wittenberg.
Those of Walther's hymns which have passed into English are:—
i. Herzlich Lieb hab ich dich, mein Gott. Trinity Sunday. First published in 1566 as above, and thence in Wackernage, iii. p. 204, in 4 stanzas of 8 lines. Translated as:—
0 God, my Rock! my heart on Thee. This is a good translation of stanza i., iii., iv., by A. T. Russell, as No. 133 in his Psalms & Hymns, 1851.
ii. Herzlich thut mich erfreuen. Eternal Life. First published separately, in 33 stanzas, at Wittenberg, in 1552, entitled "A beautiful spiritual and Christian new miner's song, of the Last Day and Eternal Life" [Konigsberg Library]. Thence in Wackernagel, iii. p. 187, in 34 stanzas, stanza 33 being added from the Dresden reprint of 1557. It is set to the melody of a popular song on the Joys of Summer. It is a fresh and beautiful hymn, but is only partially available on account of its length. Translated as:—
1. Now fain my joyous heart would sing. This is a translation of stanza 1, 4, 5, 17, 33, 34, by Miss Winkworth, in her Lyra Germanica 2nd Ser., 1858, p. 223. Her translations of stanzas 1, 4, 5, were included in the English Presbyterian Psalms & Hymns, 1867, No. 325.
2. Soon will the heavenly Bridegroom come. This is by Dr. Kennedy, in his Hymn. Christanza, 1863, No. 1009, and follows the text of the Geistliche Lieder omitting stanza 16, 18, 13. It is repeated in the Laudes Domini, N. Y., 1884, &c.
3. The Bridegroom soon will call us. By Dr. M. Loy, from the Geistliche Lieder, but omitting stanzas 18, 13, as No. 24 in the Ohio Lutheran Hymnal, 1880. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A. ]
--Excerpts from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
Johann Walter
Notker
840 - 912 Person Name: S. Notker Balbulus (850-912) Composer of "[Mitten wir im Leben sind]" in Sammlung Kirchlicher Lieder Notker Balbulus, so called from his slight stuttering, was born in Switzerland about 840. Ekkehard V. in the 2nd Chapter of his Vita Sancti Notkeri (written about 1220), says he was born at Heiligau, now Elgg, in the Canton of Zurich; but Meyer von Knonau, seeing that his family were closely connected with Jonswil in the Canton of St. Gall, thinks that Notker was probably born at Jonswil. He entered the school of the famous Benedictine Abbey of St. Gall at an early age, and spent the rest of his life there. In due course he was admitted as one of the brethren of the monastery; in 890 is marked as librarian, and in 892 and 894 as guestmaster (hospitarius); his principal employment being in scholastic and literary work. He became eventually one of the foremost in the monastery at that its most flourishing period; but was never abbot there (Notker the Abbot of St. Gall, who died 975, was of a younger generation), and declined various offers of preferment elsewhere. He died at St. Gall, April 6, 912. In 1513 he was beatified by Pope Julius II., but does not seem to have been formally canonized, nor does an office in his honour appear to have been authorised for use except at St. Gall (Lebensbild des heiligen Notker von St. Gallen, by G. Meyer von Knonau, Zurich, 1877; Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie, xxiv. 35, &c).
Ekkehard IV. (d. 1060), in his Casus Sancti Galli, chapter iii., thus lovingly characterises Notker (a translation would not express the conciseness of the original):—
"Corpore, non animo, gracilis; voce, non spiritu, balbulus ; in divinis erectus, in adversis patiens, ad omnia mitis, in nostratium acer erat exactor disciplinis; ad repentina timidulus et inopinata, praeter daemones infestantes, erat; quibus quidem se audenter opponere solebat. In orando, legendo, dictando, creberrimus. Et ut omnis sanctitatis ejus in brevi complectar dotes, sancti Spiritus erat vasculum, quo suo tempore abundantius nullum."
Notker was a favourite of the Emperor Charles the Fat, who paid him special attention during his visit to St. Gall, Dec. 4-6, 883. His claim to notice here is as the first important writer of sequences; and as indeed the practical inventor of this species of compositions. He seems to have begun writing sequences about 862, and in 885 collected them into a volume (the Liber Sequentiarum Notkeri, hereafter in this article entitled the L. S. N.), which he dedicated to Liutward, who was Bishop of Vercelli, and Chancellor (till 887) to Charles the Fat. In the dedicatory epistle prefixed (reprinted by Daniel, v. p. 5, from the St. Gall manuscript, No. 381) Notker gives an account of his first essays, of which the following is a summary:—
ii. Origin of Notker’s Sequences. — In his youth he says he found great difficulty in remembering the cadences of the neumes [or musical notes which were set to the final a of the word Alleluia in the Gradua, between the Epistle and the Gospel. When one of the monks of the Abbey of Jumieges (near Rouen, destroyed by the Normans in 851), after wandering from place to place came to St. Gall (about 862), he brought with him his Antiphonary. There, to his delight, Notker found words set to these troublesome neumes, but the words seem to to have been merely strung together for mnemonic purposes. Incited by this example, Notker determined to try to compose something more worthy of the occasion, and wrote the sequence "Laudes Deo concinat" to one of these sets of neumes. He showed his work to his master Iso,
[the first important teacher at St. Gall, where he was in residence 852-870 ; and, finally, as head of the outer school, which was meant for those who did not intend to become monks of St. Gall],
who was delighted with it, but suggested various improvements, and especially that each syllable should go to one note. Following these instructions, Notker wrote a second sequence beginning "Psallat Ecclesia, mater illibata," and showed both to his other master Marcellus,
[an Irishman, originally called Mongal, who had accompanied his uncle Marcus, an Irish Bishop, to Rome, and on their return journey settled at St. Gall, about 850. He was certainly there from 853 to 865. He was a good scholar, and, above all, an excellent musician. On the division of the monastic school, he became head of the inner school, which was meant for those who looked forward to becoming brethren of the monastery],
who was greatly pleased with them, transcribed them on rolls, and gave them to the scholars to practice. (So the Dedicatory Epistle. Compare Dr. Neale's note in his Mediaeval Hymns, ed. 1863, p. 29, where he gives an interesting account of the origin of Sequences, though not a little of the information he gives regarding Notker seems to be derived from his own imagination.)
iii. The Notkerian Sequences. Genuine and False.— From this account it might seem perfectly easy to determine which are the genuine sequences of Notker. But no autograph copy of the Liber Sequentiarum Notkeri. has survived, and although there are still extant at least eight mss. not later than the 11th century, all professing to furnish us with theL. S. N, yet on examination it is found that no two manuscripts exactly agree. From the fact that Notker was an accomplished musician, and is known to have composed the melodies as well as the words of sequences, one might hope to gain help. There is indeed an important MS. at St. Gall (No. 484) apparently written early in the 10th century, which contains the melodies without words; but there is nothing to show which of these are by Notker, and which are earlier. Nor does early tradition help us much. In the interlinear notes to his Rhythmi de Sancto Otmaro (St. Gall MS. 393, p. 153, both the text and notes being in Ekkehard's autograph), Ekkehard IV. speaks of Notker as having composed 50 sequences, but nowhere does he give a list of their first lines. The conjecture of Wilmanns is probably correct, viz., that Ekkehard took the St. Gall MS., No. 378, as his standard. It contains 55 sequences in the L. S. N. (Nos. 84, 114 had not been inserted when Ekkehard wrote), and deducting from this the sequences which in his Casus Sancti Galli Ekkehard definitely ascribes to others (Nos. 48, 95, 97, 106, 110, 111) there remain, in round numbers, 50.
The most careful attempt to settle what are genuine and what are false is in an article by W. Wilmanns (Welche Sequenzen hat Notker verfasst? ) in Moriz Haupt's Zeitschrift fürdeutsches Alterthum, vol. xv., Berlin, 1872, pp. 267-294. With this may be compared P. Anselm Schubiger's Sängerschule St. Gallens, Einsiedeln, 1858; and K. Bartsch's Lateinische Sequenzen des Mittelalters, Rostock, 1868. The references in Daniel are confused and inexact….
vii. Conclusion.— Notker's Sequences are remarkable for their majesty and noble elevation of tone, their earnestness and their devoutness. They display a profound knowledge of Holy Scripture in its plainer and its more recondite interpretations, and a firm grasp and definite exposition of the eternal truths of the Christian Faith. The style is clear, and the language easily comprehensible, so that whether he is paraphrasing the Gospel for the day, or setting forth the leading ideas of the Church's festivals, or is engaged in vivid and sympathetic word-painting; he is at once pleasing and accurate. His sequences were speedily received with favour as a welcome change from sound to sense, and from the end of the 9th century to the middle of the 12th, they, together with sequences on the same model, were in universal use over Northern Europe. As they were written for the neumes of the Alleluia they were of course made to correspond thereto, and must be studied in connection with their melodies. The metrical rules governing their composition are intricate, suffice it to say here that they were written in rhythmical prose, somewhat in the form of the Hebrew Psalms, in irregular lines and without any attempt at rhyme. It is thus difficult to present a version in English which shall be at once exact and yet suited to modern congregational use. The only literal version which has attained any popularity in English is Dr Neale's translation of No. 56, "Cantemus cuncti", and he complains bitterly (Medaeval Hymns, ed. 1867, pp. viii., and 42) that hymnal compilers have ignored the ancient melody to which it was written, and that it has been “cramped, tortured, tamed down into a chant." Still the Notkerian sequences are worthy of greater attention than has been bestowed on them by English translators. If the endeavour to give a literal version is abandoned, they allow a wider choice of measures and greater freedom of rendering than the later rhyming Sequences. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
==================
Notker, Balbulus, p. 812, i.
Two interesting monographs dealing with Notker and his time are Die Dichterschule St. Gallens und der Reichenau unter den Karolingern und Ottonen, by Paul von Winterfeld, in the Neue Jahrbucher für das Klassische Altertum, Leipzig, 1900, pp. 341-361; and the Geschichte der Schule von St. Gallen, by P. Gabriel Meier of Einsiedeln, in the Jahrbuch für Schweizerische Geschichte, Zürich, 1885 (vol. x., pp. 35-128). Paul von Winterfeld, before his early death, had been preparing a critical ed. of Notker's Sequences for the Poetae Latini Aevi Carolini; and a critical edition is promised in the Dreves-Blume Analecta Hymnica. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--Excerpt from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
Notker
