The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-04-10
oriain of the "stabat Mater. y

y 5lSdI llldliy people whose QeNODOn
TO the Way of the Cross is helped by
the hearing of the ''Stabat Mater
would like to know something of it's
origin.
The 'Stabat Mater was written (says
the Cork EXamineT by "JacOpone'' de
! Todi-Italian for SILLY Jack" He was
born of good family in Todi, village
in the province of Umbria in the year
1890. He graduated with high honors
at the University of Bologna, taking the
! degree of doctor of law. He at once
entered the practice of his profession,
and although he led a dissipated life,
| soon became one of the most successful
and wealthy young men in the prov
ince. 1t was then he married Wanna di
Bernidino di Guidone. a beautiful. high
| ly accomplished, and most virtuous
young lady, in whose veins coursed the
blue blood Of the Ghibellines. He had
not been married one year when at
celebration of public games on a certain
tete day. which both he and his wife at
tended, he in the capacity of one Of the
participants in the game, suddenly the
temporary structure i'm which the audi
ence was assembled fell in ruins, and
most Of it, including the fair Wanna,
was crushed beneath the debris. Almost
trenzied with grief, the young husband
sought his wife, whom he found bleed
ing and fatally injured. 1t was then he
discovered that she wore beneath her
splendid gown a shirt of hair-cloth. 1T
was for you.' she told him, and with
these words she died. Poor Jacomo for
the first time in his life realized that he
had been treading "the primrose path
Of dalliance, not reckoning his own
rede."
Thereafter. after having sold all his
possessions and given the proceeds to
the poor, he wandered about his native
town bareheaded. barefooted and in
rags. The boys gathered around and
Knocked him. He feigned madness in
order to punish himself for his love of
Nainglory and pride Of intellect. and he
was called "Jacopone" C'the silly one'O.
But often when his deriders hemmed
him in, he turned upon them and
preached to them, admonishing them to
give up their sinful ways and lead bet
ter lives. For ten years he led this kind
of a life, until he entered a Franciscan
convent as a Lesser Brother.
He had hoped to find peace. but hay
ing become involved in difficulties with
the pope. he was communicated and
imprisoned 1T is pleasing, however, for
Catholics TO know that three years be-
fore his death he was absolved from eX-
communication, and died fortified by
the sacraments of the church. on Christ
mas night 1906, just as the priest in the |
convent chapel was intoning the Gloria |
in EXcelsis"
1t Is not known just when he wrote the |
'Stabat Mater" 1t is more than likely |
that it was the work of years, for such |
are not usually, dashed off |
CIf
piece-for such it is, as unique in its |
way as any of those painted by RAJ
phael or chiseled by Angelo. The |
Catholic liturgy as we are told by
Ozanam, has nothing more touching |
than this sad lament, whose monoto-
nous stTOphes fall like tears so sweet
that there can be here recognized q
sorry wholly divine and eonsoled by the
angels" And Ludwig Tick says of it:
The loveliness of sorrow in the depth
Of pain, the smiling in tears. the child
like simplicity which touches on the
brightest heaven. had TO me never be-
fore risen so bright in the soul 1 had
to turn away to hide my tears. espe-
cially at the place, 'Vidit suam dulcem
natum.'
1t has, moreover, been illustrated by
some of the greatest painters and set
- 4
composers. Guido REM, Salvi Sassafer-
ratio and Carlo Dolce, each devoted
canvas to the Mater Dolorosa. Titan
added two. and Murillo and Brockman
Zach one. Lazerges devoted a canvas to
he illustration of the poem, which he
,alls the "Stabat Mater this is the
only painting by that name which we
1now of. AS to the musical settings.
here is first of all the old Gregorian
,hant tune. in which the words are
Usually sung in our churches. Pales-
Tlna was the first to set it to more elab-
rate music: he wrote it for double cho-
uses, with an occasional quartet but
he words of the hymn are never re-
)eated, consequently the work is not of
my considerable length. Rossini's me-
odious music is beautiful in itself, but
t is rather operate in its character. and
tut little in keeping with the spirit of
he text The "Stabat Mater of Anton
)vorak comes nearer to this: il is one
f the best creations. The concluding
lumber is especially effective. and we
re told by an eminent musical critic :
hat ''for rugged power and dramatic {
nergy it reminds US of Beethoven in :
ne of his Hottest moods It has also L
cen put to music by Pergolesi, HAYDN,
5ellini. Neukamm and Meyerbeer.
1t may naturally be asked whether
his was the only poem its author wrote. t
We are told by his biographer that he
rrote number of prose articles in :
rhich ne attacked the corruption of So
iety in his day, and also quite a num-
er of other hymns. But the "Stabat $
later was his masterpiece and it is [
efficient to immortalize him.