Page:History of the German people at the close of the Middle Ages vol1.djvu/279

POPULAR POETRY 267 women. She is the crown of virgins. She is the delight of angels. She is the light of heaven. Neither sun nor moon surpasses her in brightness.' In most of the pious hymns Christ is pictured as the bridegroom of the Church and of each soul, as we may see in the following religious allegory: ' We will build a little house, a retreat for our soul ; Jesus shall be master, Mary the directress. Fear of the Lord shall guard the door, the love of God be the willing slave. Humility shall reign there, and Wisdom shall lock all in.' A Christian's longing after heaven speaks in every line of the following hymn : ' I wish that I were home and away from worldly consolation ... in that home where I shall gaze on God eternally. Awake, my soul ! prepare thy wings ; the choir of angels await thee there ; this earth is too narrow for thee ; thou shalt come here no more. In our home above there is life without suffering, health without pain.' The German hymns sung by the people did not in those days, any more than in these, belong to the liturgy proper ; nevertheless, custom and their uni- versal use at the different religious services and obser- vances gave them something of a liturgical character. They were the outpourings of faith and joy, and supplemented the set prayers in which the laity took part during the services. Not only at the processions, at the pilgrimages on the great feast-days, and at the dramatic representations, but before and after sermons, as well as after some of the responses at Mass and morning and evening prayers, they were sung in