Fiat lux means "let there be light". It is a quote from Genesis chapter 1.
| Chapter | Latin | English |
|---|---|---|
| Comments | ||
| 13 | Domne | Lord |
| A contraction of Domine. The contraction is used when addressing human lords, as opposed to the Lord God. In the book the term is used to address the abbot. | ||
| 13 | Sub immunitate apostolica hoc suppositum est. Quisquis nuntium molestare audeat, ipso facto excommunicetur. | This has been placed under apostolic immunity. Let anyone who may dare to bother the nuncio be automatically excommunicated. |
| 13 | Accedite ad eum | Come ye to him |
| From Psalm 33(34):6 | ||
| 13 | Quidam mihi calix nuper expletur, Paule. Precamini ergo Deum facere me fortiorem. Metuo ut hic pereat. Spero te et fratres saepius oraturos esse pro tremescente Marco Apolline. Valete in Christo, amici. | Indeed the cup has recently been filled up for me, Paul. May you all therefor pray that God make me stronger. I fear he may perish. I hope that thou and the brothers would often pray for the growing fear of Marcus Apollo. Farewell in Christ, my friends. |
| The cup he mentions is an allusion to the cup mentioned by Christ in the garden of Gethsemane | ||
| 13 | Texarkanae datum est Octava Ss Petri et Pauli, Anno Domini termillesimo... | Given in Texarkana on the Octave of Saints Peter and Paul, in the year of the Lord three thousand ... |
| The Octave of Saints Peter and Paul is the 6th of July | ||
| 13 | vespero mundi expectando | the evening of the world is to be expected |
| 14 | De Vestigiis Antecessarum Civitatum | Concerning the Footprints of Earlier Cities |
| 14 | Cave canem | Beware of the dog |
| 14 | Vexilla regis | Flags of the King |
| First line from a hymn | ||
| 14 | Sancta Maisie, interride pro me | Saint Maisie, inter-laugh for me |
| Interride is a pun on "intercede" | ||
| 14 | Ergo sum | Therefore I am |
| From Descartes, cogito ergo sum, "I think therefore I am" | ||
| 14 | Stultus Maximus | the Greatest Fool |
| 14 | Haec commixtio ... | This intermixing ... |
| Beginning of prayer used at Mass, "May this mixture and consecration of the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ be made into eternal life for those of us who receive it". | ||
| 16 | Memento, Domine, omnium famulorum tuorum | Remember, Lord, all thy servants |
| A prayer from the Roman Canon of the mass | ||
| 17 | Tibi adsum | I am here for you |
| 18 | In principio Deus | In the beginning God ... |
| Genesis 1:1 | ||
| 18 | Caelum et terram creavit | Created heaven and earth |
| Genesis 1 | ||
| 18 | Vacuus erat autem mundus | But the world was empty |
| 18 | Cum tenebris in superficie profundorum | with darkness on the face of the deep |
| 18 | Ortus est Dei Spiritus super aquas | The Spirit of God rose above the waters |
| 18 | Gratias Creatori Spiritui | Thanks to the Creator Spirit |
| 18 | Dixit Deus: FIAT LUX | And God said: LET THERE BE LIGHT |
| 18 | Et lux ergo facta est | And therefore there was light |
| 18 | Lucem esse bonam Deus vidit | God saw the light was good |
| 18 | Et secrevit lucem a tenebris | And he separated the light from the darkness |
| 18 | Lucem appelavit 'diem' et tenebras 'noctes' | The light he called 'the day' and the darkness 'nights' |
| 18 | Vespere occaso | When evening had fallen |
| 18 | Lucifer! Ortus est et primo die | The Bearer of Light! He rose so on the first day |
| 20 | Flectamus genua | Let us bend our knees |
| 20 | Levate | Rise |
| plural imperative | ||
| 20 | Oremus | Let us pray |
| usually said as an introduction to a public prayer | ||
| 20 | .. et Spiritus Sancti | ... and of the Holy Spirit |
| From the sign of the cross, "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit". Commonly said at the conclusion of a prayer. | ||
| 20 | Sedete | Sit |
| plural imperative | ||
| 20 | Et tu, Brute? | And thou, Brutus? |
| Reputed to be the last words of Julius Caesar to his friend and assassin, Brutus. Used by the thon in response to the abbot's dismissal of a page from Brave New World that the thon had taken literally. | ||
| 21 | Regnans in Excelsis | Reigning on High |
| A reference to God, who reigns from Heaven. Also the name of a papal bull issued in 1570 by Pope Pius V declaring Queen Elizabeth I of England to be a heretic for reasserting the Church of England's independence from Rome. | ||
| 21 | Hic est enim calix Sanguinis Mei | For this is the cup of my Blood |
| 22 | Lege | Read |
| singular imperative. The abbot uses this term to implore the thon to read further. | ||
| 22 | De Inanibus | Concerning the Inane |
| 22 | Ad lumina Christi' | For the light of Christ |
| 22 | Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine ... Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare | Dismiss now thy servant, Lord ... For mine eyes have seen the salvation |
| from Luke 2:29–32. A canticle chanted at Compline | ||
| 23 | Ego te absolvo | I absolve thee |
| from the rite of confession; the priest absolves the penitent of his sins | ||
| 23 | Cathartes aura regnans | the reigning Cathartes aura |
| The Cathartes aura is the taxonomic name of the turkey vulture. In Latin, the name means "purifying air". The vulture is used by the author as a poetic device as each section of the book closes. This particular usage has both literal and allegorical meaning. | ||
Read more about this topic: List Of Latin Phrases In A Canticle For Leibowitz
Famous quotes containing the word fiat:
“Then for the Style; Majestick and Divine,
It speaks no less than God in every Line:
Commanding words; whose Force is still the same
As the first Fiat that produc’d our Frame.”
—John Dryden (1631–1700)