A dozen or 14 years ago I was at a Baroque choir Christmas concert and they sang a piece by Jacob Handl. The verse was short and without elaboration but the translation struck me and stayed with me all these years--even though the composers name was elusive and I never saw the piece again--because it reminded me of the verse from Upanishads:
"pUrnamada: pUrnamidam pUrnAt pUrnamudachyate; pUrnasya pUrnamAdAya pUrnam evAvashishyate" Which roughly translates in part as: >From the Fullness came this Universe; Although fullness came out of Fullness, Fullness did not become any less Full, since Fullness remains ever full! Today, thanks to Google, Wikipedia, and the Choral Public Domain Library (cdpl.org) I was able to find again the composer, the sheet music and the translation. I find it a good reminder that Christianity, in spite of what the religion has become, has deep roots in mysticism and *MYSTERY*. Merry Christmas FFLers. hd http://www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Mirabile_Mysterium_%28Jacob_Handl%29 Original text and translations Latin text Mirabile mysterium declaratur hodie, innovantur naturae; Deus homo factus est; id quod fuit, permansit, et quod non erat, assumpsit, non commixtionem passus neque divisionem. English translation A wondrous mystery is declared today, an innovation is made upon nature; God is made man; that which he was, he remains, and that which he was not, he takes on, suffering neither commixture nor division.
