During this penitential time of Lent, we will sing the words, "Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy on us" each Sunday.
Where does this phrase come from?
This phrase has ancient roots. Scripture shows a long history of supplication to the God of Abraham--particularly in the Psalms, but also in the Old and New Testaments. [Source] In Isaiah 33:2, "Have mercy on us, Lord, that wait for thee so patiently" and in Matthew 9:27, "Lord, Son of David, have pity on us." Supplication for mercy became a formalized part of Christian worship in the first 500 years AD.
The "Lord, have mercy" we sing is actually a translation of the Greek "Kyrie eleison." The word Kyrie was used in the Septuagint, the earliest Greek translation of the Old Testament, to translate the Hebrew word Yahweh (Lord), and then again to describe Christ in the New Testament. In its pre-Christian context, the acclamation "Kyrie eleison" was widely used in civic and religious ceremonies, often addressing the benevolence of the Roman emperor. [Source] St. John Chrysostom (347 - 407 AD) may have introduced it into the liturgy of Constantinople, and from there it was popularized and introduced into other liturgies.
"The Kyrie" did not definitively become part of the Roman rite until 529 AD with the third canon of the Second Council of Vaison. Rather than translate it into the Latin ("Miserere Dominus"), it was imported directly as it was received in Greek. The Council wrote that the Kyrie should "be said with great insistence and compunction...at Matins and Mass and Vespers." St. Gregory I (590-604) took great pains, however, to point out how the Western church was not imitating the East. He wrote to John of Syracuse,
"We neither said nor say Kyrie Eleison as it is said by the Greeks. Among the Greeks all say it together, with us it is said by the clerks and answered by the people, and we say Christe Eleison as many times, which is not the case with the Greeks. Moreover in daily Masses some things usually said are left out by us; we say Kyrie Eleison and Christe Eleison, that we may dwell longer on these words of prayer." [Source]
How is it incorporated into worship?
In Western and Eastern liturgies, "Kyrie eleison" almost always appears in multiples of 3 early on in the liturgy during a confessional time, and it is sung, either by a leader or the congregation. Beyond that, there is much variation across traditions and time periods. The following picture represents an early chant form of the Kyrie:
"Troping" (creating variations on pre-existing material) in the 9th and 10th centuries led to complex musical settings of the Kyrie, only performable by trained choirs. At the height of polyphonic writing in the 15th and 16th centuries, musical settings of the mass included the Kyrie, Gloria (Glory to God in the highest), Credo (Creed), Sanctus (holy, holy, holy), Benedictus (Blessed be the Lord), and Angus Dei (Lamb of God). The following mass by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina is a great example of such complex writing:
The Kyrie setting we are using was written in 1990 by Swee Hong Lim. Though modern and in English, the setting mimics Latin chant and retains the 3-fold Kyrie format.
Why are we introducing it to our liturgy?
In the wake of the Reformation and myriad denominational rifts over the past 500 years, many Protestant churches have simplified their liturgies. As a result, many congregations no longer sing the Kyrie. Congregations have developed many new, poignant confessions that serve them well. However, singing the Kyrie can bring a unique sense of divine mystery and penitential reverence to worship. That makes it an especially good partner with the season of Lent.
The Kyrie is a subtle reminder that we do not come on Sunday mornings to do something great for God. Without His mercy, we are unable to do anything good for Him. Though we have done nothing to deserve it, we receive everything we need from the Lord. St. John's Lutheran Church explains it beautifully:
"We do not come for more money or power. We do not come to make our problems go away. We do not come to show how wonderful we are. We do not come to be entertained. We come to receive what God has to give us. We come for mercy." [Source]
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