"On Eagle's Wings" is a devotional hymn composed by
Michael Joncas
Jan Michael Joncas (born December 21, 1951) is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, liturgical theologian, and composer of contemporary Catholic music best known for his hymn " On Eagle's Wings".
Biography
Joncas ...
. Its words are based on
Psalm 91
Psalm 91 is the 91st psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." In Latin, it is known as 'Qui habitat". As a p ...
,
Book of Exodus
The Book of Exodus (from grc, Ἔξοδος, translit=Éxodos; he, שְׁמוֹת ''Šəmōṯ'', "Names") is the second book of the Bible. It narrates the story of the Exodus, in which the Israelites leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through ...
19, and
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and form ...
13. Joncas wrote the piece in either 1976 or 1979,
after he and his friend, Douglas Hall, returned from a meal to learn that Hall's father had died of a heart attack.
It was recorded in 1979, with Hall as producer, published by North American
Liturgy Resources and later purchased by New Dawn Music, a subsidiary of
Oregon Catholic Press
Oregon Catholic Press (OCP, originally the Catholic Truth Society of Oregon) is a publisher of Catholic liturgical music based in Portland, Oregon. It published the newspapers ''Catholic Sentinel'' and ''El Centinela''; both papers have been dis ...
. It has become popular as a contemplative hymn at
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
Masses as well as at
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
services of worship.
It is now sung during services of many Christian denominations, including
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement churches, and was performed at many of the funerals of victims of the
September 11, 2001, attacks. It is often performed either at the beginning or the ending of a Roman Catholic
funeral 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, ...
. It has been performed at many internationally broadcast papal Masses, was selected as part of the 2007 funeral Mass for
Luciano Pavarotti in
Modena, Italy, also broadcast internationally.
Joe Biden referred to and recited the hymn in his presidential victory speech on November 7, 2020. He said the hymn was important to his family and his deceased son
Beau
Beau may refer to:
* Beau (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name, nickname or surname
* Beau (guitarist) (born 1946), songwriter and 12-string guitar specialist
* Beau (grape), another name for the Italian wine grape ...
, who died of brain cancer in 2015. Joncas was "honored and humbled".
Cover versions
In 1998, the tenor
Michael Crawford
Michael Patrick Smith, (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English tenor, actor and comedian.
Crawford is best known for playing both the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' a ...
released his album, ''On Eagle's Wings'', on which Joncas' song is the first track.
The Italian DJ
Gigi D'Agostino
Luigino Celestino di Agostino (; born 17 December 1967), known professionally as Gigi D'Agostino (), is an Italian DJ, remixer, singer and record producer. In 1986, he started his career as a DJ spinning Italo disco. His biggest chart successes ...
recorded a
dance cover version of this song for his 2004 album ''
L'Amour Toujours II'', included also in the ''Benessere 1'' compilation.
The Christian duo
Shane & Shane
Shane & Shane is a Texas-based contemporary worship music band known for acoustic praise and worship music. The band consists of Shane Barnard (vocals, acoustic guitar) and Shane Everett (vocals). They are often joined by their drummer and manag ...
recorded the song for their 2015 album ''
Psalms II'' under the title "Psalm 91 (On Eagles' Wings)" covering the song based on Joncas' composition.
The
Baroque pop singer
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent r ...
recorded a cover version of "On Eagle's Wings" in 2020.
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*Listen Here
On Eagle’s Wings/En Sus AlasGIA PublicationsMichael Joncas CDs
{{Authority control
Contemporary Catholic liturgical music
1979 songs
Christian songs
Songs based on the Bible