The New Christmas Proclamation, Chanted: In Vigilia Nativitatis Domini

Here's a video of the Christmas Proclamation sung - and beautifully! - in English: "The Solemn Proclamation of Christmas, Midnight Mass 2011. Broadcast live from St George's RC Cathedral, Southwark on 24th December 2011. Director of Music: Nick Gale, Soloist: Dominic Keating-Roberts. Text: New ICEL translation 2010."



Here's a PDF of the chant score in English, from Musica Sacra.

According to Proclamations for Christmas, Epiphany, and Easter:

The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas Proclamation) comes from the Roman Martyrology, a collection of saints' days and liturgical observances, which was (and in some places, still is) read during the Office of Prime, the first prayer of the day.  The Martyrology, which means "record of martyrs," is essentially an almanac - when it is publicly read, the phases of the moon may be announced as well as the memorials and feasts of saints!  The Christmas Proclamation is part of this compendium of days.  It is all about time:  it situates the birth of Christ in the context of human history, especially the sacred history of the Hebrew people, from Abraham to Moses, from David to the prophets.  The Proclamation we hear on Christmas has been revised to reflect the Church's growing understanding of the time of Creation.  Christ came into the world when "ages beyond number had run their course from the creation of the world," and "century upon century" after the flood.  The Proclamation situates the birth of Christ within the history of the Chosen People, as well as in the calendars of the Greeks - "the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad" - and the Romans - "the year seven hundred and fifty-two since the foundation of the City of Rome, in the forty-second year of the reign of Caesar Octavian Augustus."  At this precise moment in time, Jesus Christ was born of Mary in Bethlehem.  He was born because of God's loving plan "to consecrate the world by his most loving presence."  We rejoice to live in this consecrated world, imbued with the presence of God.

FYI, you can see how and where the Proclamation of Christmas is and was used at the Office of Prime at Divinum Officum.  Just make sure the date field at top says 12-24 (it doesn't matter what year); then click the Prima link at the bottom.  (That's a great site, BTW!  You can get all the Offices for every day of the  year all the way from "Pre Trident Monastic" to "1960 New Calendar"!  Amazing.)

Here's the Proclamation sung in Latin at the Vatican at Christmas Midnight Mass (the liturgical occasion at which it's now most often used) in 2010:



Here's a PDF of the chant score for this, in Latin, also from Musica Sacra.

This is the Latin text from the YouTube page, along with an English translation from the  from the USCCB website.

Octavo Kalendas ianuarii. Luna decima nona.

Innumeris transactis sæculis a creatione mundi, quando in principio Deus creavit cælum et terram et hominem formavit ad imaginem suam;

permultis etiam sæculis, ex quo post diluvium Altissimus in nubibus arcum posuerat, signum fœderis et pacis;

a migratione Abrahæ, patris nostri in fide, de Ur Chaldæorum sæculo vigesimo primo;

ab egressu populi Israël de Ægypto, Moyse duce, sæculo decimo tertio;

ab unctione David in regem, anno circiter millesimo;

hebdomada sexagesima quinta, iuxta Danielis prophetiam;

Olympiade centesima nonagesima quarta;

ab Urbe condita anno septingentesimo quinquagesimo secundo;

anno imperii Cæsaris Octaviani Augusti quadragesimo secundo;

toto Orbe in pace composito, Iesus Christus, æternus Deus æternique Patris Filius, mundum volens adventu suo piissimo consecrare, de Spiritu Sancto conceptus, novemque post conceptionem decursis mensibus, in Bethlehem Iudæ nascitur ex Maria Virgine factus homo:

Nativitas Domini nostri Iesu Christi secundum carnem.


The Twenty-fifth Day of December,

when ages beyond number had run their course
from the creation of the world,

when God in the beginning created heaven and earth,
and formed man in his own likeness;

when century upon century had passed
since the Almighty set his bow in the clouds after the Great Flood,
as a sign of covenant and peace;

in the twenty-first century since Abraham, our father in faith,
came out of Ur of the Chaldees;

in the thirteenth century since the People of Israel were led by Moses
in the Exodus from Egypt;

around the thousandth year since David was anointed King;

in the sixty-fifth week of the prophecy of Daniel;

in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;

in the year seven hundred and fifty-two
since the foundation of the City of Rome;

in the forty-second year of the reign of Caesar Octavian Augustus,
the whole world being at peace,

JESUS CHRIST, eternal God and Son of the eternal Father,
desiring to consecrate the world by his most loving presence,
was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
and when nine months had passed since his conception,
was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Judah,
and was made man:

The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

The next paragraph at Proclamations for Christmas, Epiphany, and Easter continues from the first one cited above (my bolding):

The chant setting of the Christmas Proclamation richly reinforces this theme.  It is an adapted version of the tone used to chant the readings from the Old Testament.  As such, this chant setting is very appropriate for this Proclamation that takes us through the Old Testament, from Genesis to Daniel.  The chant begins with the normal cadences, but then something interesting happens.  When the name of Jesus Christ comes into the text, the cadences disappear and the chant remains stuck, as it were, on the reciting tone.  The effect is dramatic and builds suspense as we wait for the resolution.  But instead of coming down at the end of the thought, the chant leaps up to its highest pitch at the words "was born."  Well sung, the Proclamation is electrifying; through words and music we recognize that Christ's coming changes everything.

And that, for me, is another terrific example of how wonderfully the celebrations of the Great Church Year are woven together in their music and texts; each text and each chant is carefully chosen and/or written to best express an idea or emotion central to the faith - or to refer to other texts and chants! - with the ultimate goal of making the Year a coherent didactic and expressive whole.  It is a complete system, created to explain and express the events and ideas of the faith - and with the facts of human experience and the entire human condition always fixedly in mind.  (This is, matter of fact, a close imitation of  how the Bible itself is put together.)

Here's a guitar version, sung in Latin; not bad, really!



Full Homely Divinity also offers a new version of the Proclamation of Christmas  ("Based on a traditional text from the Roman Martyrology, for liturgical use at either the Midnight Mass of Christmas or the Liturgy of the Hours"):

The Proclamation of Christmas

Some billions of years having passed since the creation of the world, when, in the beginning God created heaven and earth, Some thousands of years from the salvation of mankind when the family of Noah survived the flood, Nineteen centuries after the promise was given to Abraham, the father of our faith, Seventy generations after Moses brought the children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt, A thousand years from the anointing of David as King over the chosen people, in fulfillment of the times and years and months and days discerned by the vision of the Prophets—

In the course of secular history, in the one hundred and ninety-third Olympiad, Seven and one half centuries from the founding of the City of Rome, In the forty-second year of the reign of the Emperor Octavian Augustus, while the whole world enjoyed a span of peace, In this sixth and final age of human achievement—

Jesus Christ, eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, wishing to consecrate the whole world and all time by His blessed presence, conceived as man by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit, after nine months of growth in the womb of His mother, was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Juda, and for our salvation became Man .

Now in our own time this marks the Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, after the manner of all flesh.

For comparison, here is the older Christmas Proclamation chanted, in Latin, to the Solemn Tone - the "Martyrologium in Vigilia Natitivatis Domini Tonus solemnior."  It's also very beautiful; the words are below the video, with an English translation following.

 Octavo Kalendas Januarii

Anno a creatione mundi, quando in principio Deus creavit coelum et terram, quinquies millesimo centesimo nonagesimo nono:

A diluvio vero, anno bis millesimo nongentesimo quinquagesimo septimo:

A nativitate Abrahae, anno bis millesimo quintodecimo:

A Moyse et egressu populi Israel de Aegypto, anno millesimo quingentesimo decimo:

Ab unctione David in regem, anno millesimo trigesimo secundo:

Hebdomoda sexagesima quinta juxta Danielis prophetiam:

Olympiade centesima nongentesima quarta:

Ab urbe Roma condita, anno septingentesimo quinquagesimo secundo:

Anno imperii Octaviani Augusti quadragesimo secundo:

toto urbe in pace composito,

sexta mundi aetate, Jesus Christus aeternus Deus, aeternique Patris Filius, mundum volens adventu suo piisimo consecrare, de Spiritu Sancto conceptus, novemque post conceptionem decursus mensibus, in Bethlehem Judae nascitur ex Maria Virgine factus homo:

Nativitas Domini nostri Iesu Christi secundum carnem.


The Eighth of the Calends of January

The year from the creation of the world, when in the beginning God created heaven and earth, five thousand one hundred and ninety-nine:

From the deluge, the year two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seven:

From the birth of Abraham, the year two thousand and fifteen:

From Moses and the going out of the people of Israel from Egypt, the year one thousand five hundred and ten:

From David's being anointed king, the year one thousand and thirty-two:

In the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel:

In the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad:

From the building of the city of Rome, the year seven hundred and fifty-two:

In the forty-second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus:

The whole world being in peace:

In the sixth age of the world: Jesus Christ, the eternal God, and Son of the eternal Father, wishing to consecrate this world by his most merciful coming, being conceived of the Holy Ghost, and nine months since his conception having passed, In Bethlehem of Juda is born of the Virgin Mary, being made Man:

The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Also see The Christmas Proclamation, Chanted.