Genitori, Genitoque #socs

Stream of Consciousness Saturday 1 Minute
Photo by Frans van Heerden on Pexels.com

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday for most Christians (Orthodox Christians, owing to the use of a lunar calendar, celebrate it the following Sunday). Easter is the culmination of Holy Week, where we remember the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It starts on Thursday night with the remembrance of the Last Supper Jesus had with his disciples. In the Catholic Church, after Communion on Holy Thursday, the Eucharistic Bread is taken from the altar to a place of repose, usually another tabernacle somewhere in the church. while St. Thomas Aquinas’s poem Pange Lingua Gloriosi is chanted by the choir. (The Bread is used at Good Friday’s Communion service, since Mass isn’t offered that day.)

The last two verses of the poem are sung as a separate song, called Tantum Ergo, on other occasions, most notably at Benediction, also called the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. Until the Second Vatican Council allowed the use of the vernacular, this song was sung in Latin. For reasons known only to my five-year-old mind, the words "Genitori, Genitoque" stuck in my mind; I asked Mom what they meant, and she didn’t know. They mean "To the Father and the Son," referring to God (the Father) and Jesus (the Son).

Thus ends today’s lesson. Happy Easter!

Linda is your host for Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Now a word about Lucky Strike filter cigarettes. Taste so good, you’ll eat your hat!

Published by John Holton

Internet disc jockey, lover of old TV (especially the commercials), inveterate wise guy.

Published

20 thoughts on “Genitori, Genitoque #socs”

  1. Your childhood memories are sound and full of details, that’s remarkable, John! That poem sung is so exquisite. The commercial for Lucky Strike reminded me that it wasn’t necessarily the filters that helped, it was the introduction of added sugar to the processing of the tobacco that gave the taste the additional addictive factor. Happy Easter to you and Mary – I hope you had a blessed day and that your spring is full of much joy.

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  2. Pingback: The Easter 2023 Week That Was – The Sound of One Hand Typing

  4. You’ve taken me back to my first memory of church at age 4 – a Catholic church in Washington DC where harmonious chants like this must have filtered through my drawing on a notepad. I still love this type of music.

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  5. Thank you for sharing the history and significance of Easter with us. It’s interesting to learn about the different traditions and rituals surrounding the Holy Week. The Last Supper and the commemoration of Jesus’ sacrifice are important reminders of the sacrifice and love that Jesus showed for us. I appreciate how the Tantum Ergo and other songs have been used to honor and praise God and Jesus, even in a different language. Your story about the phrase “Genitori, Genitoque” sticking in your mind is a great example of how we can be curious and seek to understand more about our faith. Happy Easter to you too, and may this day bring you joy and hope! 👍👏👌😊

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  7. Happy Easter to you. I remember all the pomp around this weekend when I was going to Catholic school. Now it’s just another Sunday. We don’t even have any peeps.

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