Daily Reading for January 13 • Hilary, Bishop of Poitiers, 367
O Wondrous giver of the light!
By whose eternal ray serene,
After the lingering hours of night,
The glory of the morn is seen, —
Bringer of light indeed art thou;
Not like the common sun of day
That o’er the world is rising now
And shining with a narrow ray;
Nay, brighter than the solar beam,
Thyself the sun and perfect light,
And in the breast thy tender gleam
Illumes with glory pure and bright.
Creator of the world, be near,
Thou radiance of the Father’s face!
Oh, shield us from all shapes of fear
And guide us by thy saving grace.
Inspire us with thy living breath,
Dwell in our hearts both night and day,
Lest by the tempter lured to death,
Our erring souls be made his prey.
Be all our actions free from stain,
Let purity our souls refine,
That shunning evil thoughts and vain,
We live within thy laws divine.
Let not our minds be overcome
By false desire or deed of shame,
And be our hearts a shrine and home
Wherein shall burn thy holy flame.
Our hope, O Saviour, is in thee,
In thee we trust, we seek thy light;
Lord, let thy love a beacon be
To guide us through the gloom of night.
“Saint Hilary’s Morning Hymn,” Lucis Largitor Splendide, in Early Christian Hymns: Translations of the Verses of the Most Notable Latin Writers of the Early and Middle Ages by Daniel Joseph Donahoe (New York: The Grafton Press, 1908).