Oostre (Easter)

The 606 a German translation

Music Image c Wiki

 

Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

 

   The 606 has often been referred to as the Mennonite National Anthem -- indeed it seems to unite all of the disparate Germanic ethnic Anabaptist voices into a single melody -- literally.

    Basically, the 606, which is now available as a ring-tone btw, is the traditional "Praise God from Whom all blessings, flow," also known as the Doxology.

    In my Bruderthaler family, we did not use the Mennonite Hymnal, so the long-standing hymnal version, the 606, did not exist for us.  Instead, we sang the simple Doxology at all family gatherings as our traditional grace before meals -- Easter, Christmas, anniversaries, weddings -- they all began with Grandpa leading the Doxology.  In that the words remain the same for both the short Doxology and the more elaborate 606, the basic unity of Mennonite culture remains intact.

    The Brüderthaler Doxology is the short one written by Englishman Thomas Ken in 1674.  The tune is attributed to Louis Bourgeois, the Old 100^th from the Genevan Psalter in 1551.

    As I understand it, the 606 exists in the English form, so as a celebration of Easter, I am sharing, with the author's permission, Abraham Gerber's Swiss-German translation of the 606 in time for the Easter meal (en Oostafast) (if you use this, please credit Gerber for his hard work).

    
    Preis Gott den Herren alle Welt,

    Dankt ihm ihr Völker nah und fern.

    Preiset ihn alle Kreatur.

    Preiset den Herrn,

    Preiset den Herrn,

    Preiset den Herrn ihr Engelscharen.

    Lobet den Herrn,

    Lobet den Herrn.

    Preist ihn ihr Völker nah und fern,

    Preist Vater, Sohn und Heilgen Geist,

    Preist Vater, Sohn und Heilgen Geist,

    Preist Vater, Sohn und Heilgen Geist.

    Halleluja, hallelujah, hallelujah Amen, Amen

                                                (Schluss wie in Englisch)

                                                © Abraham Gerber, 2009, Switzerland

Happy Easter!  He is Risen.  He is Risen Indeed!