Joseph Hermann Mohr (10 January 1834 – 7 February 1892) was a German Catholic priest, a

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

, hymn writer, and hymnologist. He was a member of the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

. When all its institutions were closed due to the Jesuits Law of 1872, he left Germany. He returned in 1882 and worked as a hymnologist. Mohr published several hymnals, promoting the return of

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

in Latin to the church liturgy, but writing German hymns intended for events beyond

mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

, such as processions. He is known for his hymn " Ein Haus voll Glorie schauet" which follows models of military marches. It appears in modern hymnals, however with modified text.

Career

Mohr was born in

Siegburg Siegburg (; i.e. ''fort on the Sieg (river), Sieg river''; Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Sieburch'') is a city in the district of Rhein-Sieg-Kreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the banks of the rivers Sieg (river), Sieg ...

, where his father was a teacher at the elementary school. He studied philosophy and theology at the

Bonn University The University of Bonn, officially the Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (), is a public research university in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the () on 18 October 1818 by Frederick Will ...

from 1852. In 1853, he became a member of the

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

. After the completion of his studies, he taught at the order's

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

in Feldkirch until 1862. From 1863, he studied rhetoric in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

and theology in

Maria Laach Maria Laach Abbey (in German: ''Abtei Maria Laach'', in Latin: ''Abbatia Maria Lacensis'' or ''Abbatia Maria ad Lacum'') is a Benedictine abbey situated in Glees, on the southwestern shore of the Laacher See (Lake Laach), in the Eifel regio ...

. He was consecrated as a priest in 1866. The Jesuits were restricted during the

Kulturkampf In the history of Germany, the ''Kulturkampf'' (Cultural Struggle) was the seven-year political conflict (1871–1878) between the Catholic Church in Germany led by Pope Pius IX and the Kingdom of Prussia led by chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Th ...

by the Jesuits Law of 1872. As all Jesuit institutions in Germany were dissolved, Mohr left Germany for Jesuit societies in France and Belgium. During this time, he wrote text and melody of his hymn " Ein Haus voll Glorie schauet". In his hometown, tradition has it that he was inspired by the Abbey on top of a mountain, overlooking the region. Its melody, especially its rhythm, is influenced by military marches. His best-known hymn, it is part of modern hymnals, but only the first of his seven

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian ''stanza'', ; ) is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme and metrical schemes, but they are not required to have either. ...

s was included in the Catholic hymnal ''Gotteslob'' of 1975, with four new stanzas by Hans W. Marx. Mohr considered the "Schönheit des Gregorianischen Chorals" (beauty of

as the appropriate music for the celebration of

. He joined an association for its studies, the ''Verein zur Erforschung alter Choralhandschriften behufs Wiederherstellung des cantus S. Gregorii'' of the music director at the

Trier Cathedral The High Cathedral of Saint Peter in Trier (), or Trier Cathedral (), is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the oldest cathedral in Germany and the largest religious structure in Trier, notable for its long l ...

, . The association fostered the restoration of Gregorian singing in Germany, with members such as Robert Eitner,

François-Auguste Gevaert François-Auguste Gevaert (31 July 1828 – 24 December 1908) was a Belgian musicologist and composer. Nicolas Slonimsky, ed., '' Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', 8th ed., Schirmer Books, New York Life Gevaert was born in Huise ...

, and Joseph Pothier. Mohr recommended congregational singing for other church events, such as meditation (''Andacht'') and processions, and wrote a handbook to improve the quality of singing. He composed the melody of " Maria, breit den Mantel aus" which is preferred in the Rhineland, a new melody of Christoph Bernhard Verspoell's "Dir jubeln Engelchöre", and a new melody of 's "Heilig bist du, großer Gott", which appear in the Catholic hymnal. As the Jesuits Law was still in effect, he left the Society of Jesus in order to return to Germany in 1882. He worked as a hymnologist in

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

, and finally in

until his death. The Josef-Mohr-Straße in Siegburg was named for him.Josef-Mohr-Straße
strassen-in-deutschland.de

Works

* ''Cantate'', hymnal, Kösel & Pustet, Regensburg, 1873 (95th edition 1922) * ''Cäcilia'', hymnal, Verlag Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg (1862), New York and Cincinnati (1874), 36th edition 1927 * ''Jubilate Deo!'', four-part edition of ''Cäcilia'', 1877 * ''Anleitung zur kirchlichen Psalmodie'', 1878 * ''Lasset uns beten'', hymnal for the dioceses of Würzburg, Salzburg, Bamberg, Speyer, 1881 * ''Cantiones Sacrae: a collection of hymns and devotional chants for the different seasons of the year, the feasts of our Lord, of the Blessed Virgin, of the saints, low masses etc.: arranged for four mixed voices.'' Ratisbon: F. Pustet 1878 (). * ''Die Pflege des Volksgesanges in der Kirche'', Verlag Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg, New York und Cincinnati, 1885 * ''Psälterlein'', Diözesangesangbuch Basel/Freiburg (Br.), 1891

Sources

* Hans-Peter Bähr: ''"... o mög das Lob von allen dir wohlgefällig sein!" Zu Leben und Werk des Siegburgers Joseph Mohr.'' in: Mauritius Mittler, Wolfgang Herborn: ''Temporibus tempora. Festschrift für Abt Placidus Mittler''. Siegburg 1995, pp 331–365. * Bernd Distelkamp: ''"Ein Haus voll Glorie schauet..." Zum 175. Geburtstag des Kirchenliedkomponisten Joseph Mohr '' in: Heimatblätter des Rhein-Sieg-Kreises, 77. Jahrgang 2009. Ed. for Geschichts- und Altertumsverein für Siegburg und den Rhein-Sieg-Kreis by H. Fischer, W. Herborn und A. Korte-Böger, Rheinlandia Verlag, Siegburg 2009, , pp 146–165. * Bernd Distelkamp: ''"Ein Haus voll Glorie schauet..." Der Siegburger Kirchenliedkomponist Joseph Mohr'' (= ''Siegburger Blätter'', Heft 21). Siegburg 2009
online
PDF; 429 kB). * * *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mohr, Hermann Joseph 1834 births 1892 deaths 19th-century German Jesuits German Roman Catholic hymnwriters People from Siegburg