The Heritage of Chinese Sacred Music by Fr. Vincent Lebbe

The Belgium missionary Fr. Vincent Lebbe (1877-1940) committed himself to evangelize in China and was a pioneer in the indigenization of the Catholic Church. He established two local religious orders, the Little Brothers of St. John the Baptist and the Little Sisters of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus. To meet the need of spiritual formation and liturgical service of the Chinese religious, Fr. Lebbe adapted Latin Gregorian chant to Chinese language so that they could sing and pray in their mother tongue. Excerpts from the Roman Missal and the Breviary by Fr. Lodovico Buglio (1602-1682) were chosen for his renditions. These Chinese chants  mark an important milestone in the history of Chinese sacred music.

Featuring recordings of these mostly forgotten Chinese chants, the Channel presents Fr. Lebbe’s beautiful works so that they can be appreciated anew.