"" (Make the gates in the world wide) is a Christian hymn with German text by

Albert Knapp Albert Knapp (25 July 1798, Tübingen - 18 June 1864, Stuttgart) was a German poet and animal welfare activist. Biography He studied theology at Tübingen, became vicar in Feuerbach (1820) and filled other positions until he made a reputation in ...

written for the Basel Mission and first published in 1829. It appeared in 19th-century German hymnals, to be sung with the melody of "". It appeared in the 1938 hymnal ''

Kirchenlied ''Kirchenlied'' ("Church song") is a German Catholic hymnal published in 1938. It was a collection of 140 old and new songs, including hymns by Protestant authors. It was the seed for a common Catholic hymnal which was realised decades later, in th ...

'' with a new melody by

Adolf Lohmann Adolf Lohmann (10 January 1907 – 19 October 1983) was a German music educator and a composer of sacred music. Several of his hymn melodies are part of the Catholic hymnal ''Gotteslob''. Career Born in Düsseldorf, Lohmann worked there as a mu ...

. The song is part of the 2013 German Catholic hymnal '' Gotteslob''.

History

wrote the text of "" in 1826. Knapp was then a young Protestant pastor in

Sulz am Neckar Sulz am Neckar is a town in the district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated on the river Neckar, 22 km north of Rottweil, and 19 km southeast of Freudenstadt. Sulz am Neckar came in the possession of the Hohe ...

, and wrote this hymn and others in his twenties, in a series of songs for the annual meeting (''Jahresfest'') of the Basel Mission. It was first sung at the on 25 May 1826. Knapp was a prolific writer of Christian poetry but reluctant to publish them. His friends published two volumes of his lyrics in Basel in 1829 in a collection entitled ''Christliche Gedichte'' (''Christian Poems''), with "" in the second volume. The collection became known in Germany. The poem appeared also in Johann Peter Lange's hymnal in 1843, in the Jauersches Gesangbuch in Breslau in 1855, in an

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...

hymnal and the Schlesisches Gesangbuch both in 1868, among others. In 1938, it became part of the hymnal ''

'' with a melody by

. It was one of the ''Christköniglieder'', proclaiming

Christ the King Christ the King is a title of Jesus in Christianity referring to the idea of the Kingdom of God where the Christ is described as seated at the right hand of God. Many Christian denominations consider the kingly office of Christ to be one of ...

in opposition to the Nazi regime. The song was included in the German Catholic hymnal ''Gotteslob'' of 1975 in regional sections. It appeared in five stanzas in the 2013 edition as GL 360, in the section "Leben in Gott - Jesus Christus" (Life in God). It has been recommended for both

Advent Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity. The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek ''parousia''. In ...

and Feast of Christ the King.

Text and theme

The call to open gates in the world is relates to general symbols which are often referred to in the Bible. Knapp wrote seven stanzas, with a focus on opening the gates for the entry of a King.

Melody and musical settings

When the poem was first used as a hymn, it was sung to the melody of "". For the publication in ''

'' in 1938,

created a melody, which was also used in later hymnals. It was described as "expressive". Bertold Hummel set this melody to a prelude and four-part setting in 1994.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 20th-century hymns in German 1938 songs 1829 poems Advent songs