A la Couperin: Et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis

et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis

καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκία

and in earth peace, good will towards men

This, of course, concludes the song of the Angels as reported in St Luke ii.14.

I am not a Greek Scholar; my Greek is very rudimentary, but I am struck again by the seemingly fundamental nature of these opening lines because the subsequent teaching of Our Lord hangs on these two clauses sung by the angels. First, one is to glorify God, to recognise His impact in bringing us as individuals into being, and to react to Him accordingly in nothing less than worship. Does the second clause really suggest that one is to have a good intention to all human beings indifferently to their state? This would encapsulate the two Dominical commandments beautifully.

The Gloria demonstrates that peace and goodwill are for all mankind but who is the source of this goodwill, Man or God? The word εὐδοκία means good favour, or an enjoyment, and this song of the angels which we echo at Mass ascribes first Glory to God and then intends for His people to be at peace in His pleasure. It appears to me to be rather covenantal in its structure: we give God glory, He takes pleasure in us, and Earth is at peace. It would be nice if εὐδοκία were qualified with a possessive pronoun in order to distinguish whether it is truly God's good will that we receive in covenant or whether it is a good will in which we must also participate together with Him.

Of course, from what we know with hindsight is that this is not an either/or situation but very much a both/and. From what the angels sing to the shepherds on the day of Our Lord's birth, it is a clear announcement of the New Covenant, a vision of what should be, and indeed will be - God living with men at peace in His glory.

However, when we sing it at Mass, we are singing of this covenant, especially mindful of our side of the bargain. This is where the second statement brings us in mind of the good will that we should have for each other, that we should take pleasure in our neighbours and look to live in peace with them. So we do indeed find that Our Lord's commands are enshrined within the Gloria, but notice that they are suffused with God Himself, as He intended them to be.