Ephrem the Syrian: Hymns

The Classics of Western Spirituality

by Ephrem the Syrian

"...a milestone in American religious publishing." New Catholic World Ephrem the Hymns translated and introduced by Kathleen E. McVey preface by John Meyendorff "Blessed be the Child who today delights Bethlehem. Blessed be the Newborn Who today made the humanity young again. Blessed be the Fruit Who Bowed Himself down for our hunger. Blessed be the Gracious One Who suddenly enriched all of our poverty and filled our need." Ephrem the Syrian (c.306-373) Ephrem was born in the Mesopotamian city of Nisibis toward the end of the third century. An outpost of the Roman Empire, Nisibis and its Christian citizens were to be formed by the reign of Constantine and by the doctrines of the Council of Nicea. There, in the context of a large and sophisticated Jewish population and numerous Gnostic sects, Ephrem sought to defend orthodox Nicene Christianity. His teaching and writing made him an influential voice in the life of Syriac Christianity through the peaceful years of Constantine's patronage, the years of persecution after 361 under Emperor Julian, and the conflict between Persians and Romans which ultimately forced Ephrem to move to Edessa where he stayed until his death in 373. It was as a poet that Ephrem made his greatest impact. Writing in isosyllabic verses called madrashe, he attained a literary brilliance that won him a place of prominence not only in his own tradition, but also in the Coptic, Ethiopian, Armenian, and Arabic traditions as well. His hymns, praised in the West by Jerome, had a formative influence on the development of medieval religious drama in Europe. Blending Greek forms with his native style, he wove a highly crafted poetry of rich symbolism, attempting to fit the events of his day into a cosmic framework of God's redemptive act in Christ. Ephrem's combination of elements of Stoicism and Middle Platonism with Christian belief in a form reminiscent of the great second century apologists produced a corpus that speaks of his own literary genius and even more eloquently of the majesty and beauty of the divine source of all true poetry. Here, in a fresh and lively translation, are the Hymns on the Nativity, Hymns Against Julian, and the Hymns on Virginity and the Symbols of the Lord in which that voice may be heard closely and appreciated, wondered at, and enjoyed. †

Genres: Poetry, Religion, Christianity, Theology, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Christian

496 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1989

About the author

Ephrem the Syrian was a Syriac deacon and a prolific Syriac-language hymnographer and theologian of the 4th century from the region of Syria. His works are hailed by Christians throughout the world, and many denominations venerate him as a saint. He has been declared a Doctor of the Church in Roman Catholicism. He is especially beloved in the Syriac Orthodox Church.

Ephrem wrote a wide variety of hymns, poems, and sermons in verse, as well as prose biblical exegesis. These were works of practical theology for the edification of the church in troubled times. So popular were his works, that, for centuries after his death, Christian authors wrote hundreds of pseudepigraphal works in his name. Ephrem's works witness to an early form of Christianity in which Western ideas take little part. He has been called the most significant of all of the fathers of the Syriac-speaking church tradition.

Reviews

[Scriptor Ignotus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saint Ephrem's hymns are theologically dense, lyrically intricate, and indicative of both an astonishing mastery of scripture and a brilliant mind for allegory and typology. If you want to see how comfortably and intuitively the eastern Fathers navigated the Bible—Old and New Testament—Ephrem is a pristine example.

[Steven Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ephrem ranks in my heart with Donne, Herbert, Hopkins, and Auden as one of the great truly faithful Christian poets. This particular collection is full of vivid imagery that unsettles our tired theological language and helps us imagine the mystery of the incarnation anew. His language can be strikingly explicit, using strong sexual metaphors in his arguments for chastity. He is daring, but not irresponsible, stark, but not brash, bold, but still pastoral. He embodies a beautiful balance between liturgical practicality and freewheeling theological exploration.

If you are a hymnwriter, a liturgist, a preacher, or a poet, you need to read this book. He's the church's best kept secret poet.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of hymns by a 4th century Orthodox Christian writer is beautiful in its own right, and well-introduced by the translator. I found it interesting the types of metaphors and Biblical allusions that a 4th century Syrian writer would use. His hymns used parallelism and poetry to reach the reader.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be honest I only read Hymns on the Nativity, but they were so beautiful! I wish his Hymns on Theophany were included. Some of the translations seem to favor precision at the expense of being poetic but I still found them to be great for meditation in preparation for the Nativity. I read a few of the Hymns against Julian and the Hymns on Virginity, they seem beautiful too, I'm just not as interested in reading them.

[Taylor Swift Scholar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok five stars for the first half and two stars for the second half. I really enjoyed Ephrem’s musings on how God, who is larger than the whole universe, fit inside of Mary. They were both funny to a modern reader and profound. I found the other hymns less interesting.

[Monique]

I only read the Nativity Hymns this time.

[Michael Gehrling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ephrem is a fascinating person. Though not a monk in the way we understand that term, he was a model of the ascetic life, particularly regarding the practice of celibacy. In fact, he made it so compelling that he actually inspired married people to give up sex and instead focus together on a single-minded devotion to Christ. Ephrem wrote hymns to be sung by a women's choir which he directed, including a number of hymns on virginity included in this volume. The volume also includes his hymns on the nativity, hymns against Julian, and hymns on the symbols of the Lord.

Ephrem's hymns present a way of reading Scripture that will likely be foreign to most readers, at least those of the Protestant variety, but it's also inspiring and helpful. In short, Ephrem sees Jesus everywhere in Scripture, and so just about every person, event and object in the Old Testament somehow points to Jesus' life. As you read, you're reactions will likely range from "Huh, I never noticed that before!" to "How did he make that connection?!"

Ephrem's hymns are also steeped in a historical context that is likely unfamiliar to most readers. Kathleen McVey provides an excellent introduction that introduces the reader to Ephrem's life, theological understanding, and historical context.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants to engage with Scripture in a fresh and challenging way.

[Joshua Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first encountered Saint Ephrem the Syrian on a retreat and was instantly blown away by the depth of insight expressed in his hymns. His ability to cull the best images across the entire spectrum of the biblical narrative and to gracefully assimilate them into cohesive themes is astounding. He was a man sensitive to God's revelation in nature and human relations as well as obviously possessing a mind saturated with Scripture.
Like many of the Patristics, he can at times shade on the polemical side, but those hymns which are strictly of that nature (eg. 'Against Julian) aren't his best anyway. Start with his Advent or Paradise works.
If you wish to experience thoughtful, heavy theology from a different angle, read Ephrem! If more of today's artists displayed such typological insight and mastery of the biblical text, our theology expressed in art (in song especially, the source of theology as it's popularly understood) would be much weightier and would more likely stand the test of time, as Ephrem's works have.

[Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The greatest poet of the patristic age and perhaps the only theologian-poet to rank beside Dante, this is how Dr. Murray describes St. Ephrem. Though I don't agree with the comparison, St. Ephrem lived centuries before Dante and Dante was maybe influenced by St. Ephrem himself, because the works of St. Ephrem were widespread among all the denominations besides his own denomination, the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch.

My favourite book on my shelf and Kathleen McVey did an outstanding job with the translation. A must have in every shelf, for Christians and non-Christians.

[Victoria Gaile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Returned this to the library today. In addition to the hymns, which I could see were beautifully crafted even in translation, this book introduced me to the Syriac church as a significant influence in early Christianity, which I'd previously been unaware of.

I blogged about St. Ephraim (and this book) a bit here.

[Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ephrem's interpretations of scripture are creative, sometimes uniquely insightful. Like many of the fathers, measured by modern standards, he is quite long winded, and the gems of his thinking are scattered over volumes of writing.

[Briana Grenert]

Insightful analysis of these complex and rich hymns. I hope to one day be able to read them in Syriac :)