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Glory to God (Gloria in excelsis)

Contemporary (Canticle 20)

Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 94

Glory to God in the highest,

and peace to his people on earth.

Lord God, heavenly King,

almighty God and Father,

we worship you, we give you thanks,

we praise you for your glory.

Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,

Lord God, Lamb of God,

you take away the sin of the world:

have mercy on us;

you are seated at the right hand of the Father:

receive our prayer.

For you alone are the Holy One,

you alone are the Lord,

you alone are the Most High,

Jesus Christ,

with the Holy Spirit,

in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

Traditional (Canticle 6)

Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 52

Glory be to God on high,

and on earth peace, good will towards men.

We praise thee, we bless thee,

we worship thee,

we glorify thee,

we give thanks to thee for thy great glory,

O Lord God, heavenly King, God the Father Almighty.

O Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ;

O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,

that takest away the sins of the world,

have mercy upon us.

Thou that takest away the sins of the world,

receive our prayer.

Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father,

have mercy upon us.

For thou only art holy,

thou only art the Lord,

thou only, O Christ,

with the Holy Ghost,

art most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

History

The hymn opens with the angels’ song to the shepherds on the night Christ was born, then continues as an early Greek hymn of praise. A version survives in the fourth-century Apostolic Constitutions, and the Orthodox still sing it at Matins. In the West it became part of the Eucharist, and Cranmer kept it there.

The first American prayer book, in 1789, let it be sung after the psalms at Morning and Evening Prayer. The 1979 book makes it one of the canticles. Its contemporary version is the shared ecumenical translation from the International Consultation on English Texts.

Sources: Apostolic Constitutions, 7.47; Book of Common Prayer (1549), Holy Communion; Book of Common Prayer (1789), Morning Prayer; English Language Liturgical Consultation, “Gloria in Excelsis”.

When it is sung

All canticles