is the Latin name under which the "

Lamb of God Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...

" is honoured within the

Catholic Mass The Mass is the central liturgical service of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, in which bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass, "the same Christ ...

and other Christian liturgies descending from the Latin liturgical tradition. It is the name given to a specific prayer that occurs in these liturgies, and is the name given to the music pieces that accompany the text of this prayer. Crozier lamb Louvre OA7267

The use of the title "Lamb of God" in liturgy is based on , in which

St. John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

, upon seeing

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, proclaims "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

Liturgical usage

Latin Catholic

The

Syrian Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indi ...

custom of a chant addressed to the Lamb of God was introduced into the

Roman Rite The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while dist ...

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

Pope Sergius I Pope Sergius I (8 September 701) was the bishop of Rome from 15 December 687 to his death, and is revered as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. He was elected at a time when two rivals, Paschal and Theodore, were locked in dispute about wh ...

(687–701) in the context of his rejection of the

Council of Trullo The Quinisext Council (Latin: ''Concilium Quinisextum''; Koine Greek: , ''Penthékti Sýnodos''), i.e. the Fifth-Sixth Council, often called the Council ''in Trullo'', Trullan Council, or the Penthekte Synod, was a church council held in 692 at ...

of 692 (which was well received in the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

East), whose canons had forbidden the iconographic depiction of Christ as a lamb instead of a man. The verse used in the first and second invocations may be repeated as many times as necessary whilst the celebrant prepares the host and wine for communion. In a Tridentine

Requiem Mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

, the words "" are replaced by "" (grant them rest), while "" is replaced by "" (grant them eternal rest). The priest uses the phrase "Lamb of God" again, later in the Mass. While displaying the Eucharistic species to the people before giving them

Holy Communion The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instituted ...

, he says: "" ("Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.")

Anglican

The following instances are found in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

: From "The Litany": From "Holy Communion": The following versions are found in ''

Common Worship ''Common Worship'' is the name given to the series of services authorised by the General Synod of the Church of England and launched on the first Sunday of Advent in 2000. It represents the most recent stage of development of the Liturgical Movemen ...

,'' the alternative Anglican liturgical resources, and also in the Episcopal Church's liturgical resources:

Lutheran

The version found in the

Lutheran Service Book ''Lutheran Service Book'' (''LSB'') is the newest official hymnal of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC). It was prepared by the LCMS Commission on Worship and published by Concordia Publishing Hou ...

of the

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), also known as the Missouri Synod, is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 1.8 million members, it is the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States. The LC ...

is:

Musical settings

Religious music

Virtually every

Mass setting The Mass ( la, missa) is a Musical form, form of sacred music, sacred musical composition that sets the invariable portions of the Christian Eucharistic liturgy (principally that of the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, and Lutheranism), kn ...

(of which there are thousands) includes an . Here are some examples: * Machaut's * Bach's

Mass in B minor The Mass in B minor (), BWV 232, is an extended setting of the Mass ordinary by Johann Sebastian Bach. The composition was completed in 1749, the year before the composer's death, and was to a large extent based on earlier work, such as a Sanctu ...

* Beethoven's * Karl Jenkins' ''

The Armed Man ''The Armed Man'' is a Mass by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins, subtitled "A Mass for Peace". The piece was commissioned by the Royal Armouries Museum for the Millennium celebrations, to mark the museum's move from London to Leeds, and it was dedic ...

'' - a mass for peace * Schubert's Mass No. 2 *

Bob Chilcott Robert "Bob" Chilcott (born 9 April 1955) is a British choral composer, conductor, and singer, based in Oxfordshire, England. He was a member of the King's Singers from 1985 to 1997, singing tenor. He has been a composer since 1997. Earl ...

's ''Little Jazz Mass'' * Ralph Vaughan Williams's Mass in G minor With a slightly changed text, the is also part of musical settings composed for the

Requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

Mass for the Dead. Such settings include: * Mozart's

* Verdi's

* Fauré's

* Rutter's

* Penderecki’s

Polish Requiem ''Polish Requiem'' (original Polish title: '' Requiem''; german: Requiem), also ''A Polish Requiem'', is a large-scale requiem mass for soloists, mixed choir and orchestra by the Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki. The Lacrimosa, dedicated to ...

* Britten's ''

War Requiem The ''War Requiem'', Op. 66, is a large-scale setting of the Requiem composed by Benjamin Britten mostly in 1961 and completed in January 1962. The ''War Requiem'' was performed for the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was b ...

'', in which the text is interleaved with Wilfred Owen's poem "

At a Calvary near the Ancre "At a Calvary near the Ancre" is a poem by Wilfred Owen on the Ancre, a tributary of the River Somme, Somme. It was the scene of two notable battles in 1916. The poem is composed of three quatrains rhyming abab. The poem links the Crucifixion of ...

" Some composers set the text as an independent movement, such as Samuel Barber, who wrote a version combining the text with the music of his '' Adagio for Strings'', sung

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

In popular culture

Outside of religious use, the text has been used by composers such as: * Elliot Goldenthal for '' Alien 3'' * Keiki Kobayashi for '' Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies'' * Elitsa Alexandrova for '' Assassin's Creed Rogue'' *

Enya Enya Patricia Brennan (; ga, Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin; born 17 May 1961), known professionally by the mononym Enya, is an Irish singer, songwriter, and musician known for modern Celtic music. She is the best-selling Irish solo arti ...

for the song "

Trains and Winter Rains "Trains and Winter Rains" is a single (music), single by Irish musician Enya, the first to be released from her 2008 studio album ''And Winter Came...''. It premiered on the BBC Radio 2 show ''Wake up to Wogan'' on 29 September 2008. The song fea ...

" * Halsey for the song ''

Castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

'' * Kuroshitsuji (Black Butler) soundtrack for episodes 17 and 18 * Jon Bellion for ''Ooh'' * New Age Worldbeat group

Enigma (German band) Enigma is a German musical project founded in 1990 by Romanian-German musician and producer Michael Cretu. Cretu had released several solo records, collaborated with various artists, and produced albums for his then-wife, German pop singer Sand ...

for the song Agnus Dei *

Rufus Wainright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded 10 studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical operas and set ...

for the song Agnus Dei from the album Want Two * Mylène Farmer "Agnus Dei" (1991)

References

{{Catholic Prayers Christian liturgical music Latin religious words and phrases Order of Mass