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The Church Fathers · c. 3rd century
O Gladsome Light
Phos Hilaron
Anonymous
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What it is
A short hymn sung at the lighting of the lamps: having come to the setting of the sun and seen the evening light, we praise Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — worthy at every moment to be hymned by reverent voices.
Why it lasted
The oldest Christian hymn outside scripture still in regular liturgical use, sung at vespers in the Eastern churches every evening for at least seventeen hundred years. Basil already called it ancient and did not know who wrote it.
Scripture it works from
Where to read it
Public domain and free to read in full, though not held here. The archives below have it.
These open a search on each archive rather than a direct link, which is the honest way to point at an edition nobody here has checked line by line.
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