Agnus Dei


Agnus Dei is the Latin name under which Jesus is honoured within Christian liturgies descending from the historic Latin liturgical tradition, including those of Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism and Anglicanism. It is the name given to a specific prayer that occurs in these liturgies, and is the name given to the music pieces that accompany the text of this prayer.
File:Crozier lamb Louvre OA7267.jpg|thumb|13th century ivory carving, Louvre.
The use of the title "Lamb of God" in liturgy is based on John 1:29, in which John the Baptist, upon seeing Jesus, proclaims "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

Liturgical usage

Latin Catholic

The Syrian custom of a chant addressed to the Lamb of God was introduced into the Roman Rite Mass by Pope Sergius I, in the context of his rejection of the Council of Trullo of 692, whose canons had forbidden the iconographic depiction of Christ as a lamb instead of a man.
The verse used in the first and second invocations may be repeated as many times as necessary whilst the celebrant prepares the host and wine for communion.
In a Tridentine Requiem Mass, the words miserere nobis are replaced by dona eis requiem, while dona nobis pacem is replaced by dona eis requiem sempiternam. Virtually every Mass setting includes an Agnus Dei.
The priest uses the phrase "Lamb of God" again, later in the Mass. While displaying the Eucharistic species to the people before giving them Holy Communion, he says: "Ecce Agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccata mundi. Beati qui ad cenam Agni vocati sunt."

Lutheran

The version found in the Lutheran Service Book of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod is:
In celebrations of the Mass done in English, the following translation is employed by the Church of Sweden:

Anglican

The following instances are found in the Church of England's Book of Common Prayer:
From "The Litany":
From "Holy Communion":
The following versions are found in Common Worship, the alternative Anglican liturgical resources, and also in the Episcopal Church's liturgical resources:

Evangelical Protestants

A popular worship song among Evangelical Protestants is a reaction to the Lamb of God being seated on the throne in Revelation 5 by Michael W. Smith. This version is response of praise to scene, while the other liturgical versions are prayers.
The words are:
A Ukrainian translation was sung in 2015 in Lviv, Ukraine, during the War in Donbas at an event organized by Franklin Graham. The song was notably sung again on Easter 2022 in Lviv by a choir of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russo-Ukrainian War.