"NON NOBIS, DOMINE"
For many year "Non nobis, Domine "was sung at graduation. Since there is a paucity of graduation programs from the early days, I have no idea when the school began this tradition; however, one year the song disappeared from the Graland graduation. No one could tell me why when I complained. Oh, did I complain! Someone told me the song no longer made sense to the students and was too religious.
A bit of history of the song: It is a short Latin hymn used as a prayer of thanksgiving and expression of humility:
Non, nobis, Domine, non nobis,
Sed nomini tuo da gloriam
Translated as. . .
Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
but to thy name give the glory.
Its history spans from the Knights Templar during the Crusades to Kenneth Branagh’s version of Shakespeare’s HENRY V ( composed by Patrick Doyle). In fact, there have been many versions of the hymn. Even Rudyard Kipling receives credit for a “version” of the hymn.
Doyle’s version still chills me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1GDRx-F1C0
As we look to the future, we should also look to the past -- just like Janus, the Roman god of beginnings and endings.
Graland Country Day School
Graland Country Day School is a private school in Denver, Colorado, serving students in preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. Founded in Denver in 1927, Graland incorporates a rich, experiential learning approach in a traditional classroom setting, emphasizing the development of globally and socially conscious leaders who excel academically.
