Only-Begotten Son (Ancient Greek:Ὁ Μονογενὴς Υἱὸς,Russian: Единородный Сыне,Ukrainian: Єдинородний Сине,Old Armenian: Միածին Որդի), sometimes called "Justinian's Hymn", the "Anthem of Orthodoxy" and/or the "Hymn of the Incarnation", is an ancient Christian hymn that was composed prior to the middle of the 6th century. It is chanted at the end of the SecondAntiphon during theDivine Liturgies ofSt John Chrysostom,St Basil the Great and ofSt Gregory the Illuminator (Armenian Divine Liturgy), and at the Little Entrance during theLiturgy of Saint James.
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This hymn is sometimes ascribed toPope Athanasius I of Alexandria; it was written after theFirst Ecumenical Council at Nicea as an affirmation of the Christological Formula championed byAthanasius. According to this hypothesis, the hymn was first used in theChurch of Alexandria but was distributed byAthanasius to all the churches of the world. It is still currently used as a mournful hymn during the service ofGreat Friday in theCoptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, with its length exceeding 10 minutes due to its long and deep melismatic nature. It is also chanted in the introductory portion of theDivine Liturgy of theEastern Orthodox Church and thoseEastern Catholic Churches which observe theByzantine Rite. The hymn is atheological statement of faith in thedogma of theIncarnation.
There are traditions attributing the hymn toEmperor Justinian andSeverus of Antioch, hence its common Greek designation as "Justinian's Hymn".[1] It is popularly believed that Justinian is the person responsible for the hymn's spread and popularity. During the controversy caused by the Origenists, Emperor Justinian declared that this hymn should be sung in all Christian Churches.
TheOriental Orthodox tradition however, ascribes the hymn toSeverus of Antioch, and it is referred to inSyriac Orthodoxliturgical books as the “Hymn of St. Severus.” In the Syriac Orthodox liturgy, the hymn is sung at the start of the Divine Liturgy,[2] whereas in theArmenian Orthodox liturgy, it is sung during the second antiphon and the text is identical to the Byzantine version, and in theCoptic Orthodox liturgy, during Holy Week.[3]
Analysis of an ancient Georgian Chantbook from Jerusalem has identified the text among the corpus of hymnography,[4] supporting a timeframe of composition prior to the middle of the 6th century when the Chantbook was compiled.[5]
The attribution of the hymn toAthanasius or an author prior to the mid-6th century seems most plausible, as it would be highly unlikely that miaphysite (Oriental Orthodox) communities would accept a liturgical hymn composed and promulgated byJustinian I, who was stridently pro-Chalcedonian. On the other hand, the dyophysite (Eastern Orthodox) churches would be equally as unlikely to accept a liturgical hymn composed by someone such asSeverus of Antioch, whom they regarded to be a heretic.
Only-BegottenSon and ImmortalWord of God,
Who for oursalvation didst will to be incarnate of the holyTheotokos andEver-VirginMary;
Whowithout change didst become man and wascrucified;
Who art one of theHoly Trinity, glorified with theFather and theHoly Spirit:
O Christ our God,trampling down death by death, save us![6]
The key word,Monogenēs, is drawn from theGospel of John1:14,1:18, and3:16. The first of these verses describes the pre-incarnateLogos as being "only-begotten of the Father"; the second speaks of Jesus' earthly ministry; and the third describes the offering of theIncarnate Christ for thesalvation of those who believe. The termMonogenes is also found in theNicene Creed as established by theFirst Ecumenical Council in 325 AD.
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