This is the night, dear friends, the night for weeping
This is the night, dear friends, the night for weeping. Peter Abelard* (1079-1142), translated by Richard Sturch* (1936- ).
This is a translation of Abelard’s ‘Haec nox, carissimi, nox illa flebilis’*, with the first line rendered almost word for word, and very beautifully. It makes a most appropriate hymn for the Thursday before Good Friday, commemorating the betrayal of Christ and looking forward to His Passion.
It was first published in October 1990 in Volume 2, No. 1 of Stainer & Bell*’s periodical subscription series of new material, Hymns and Congregational Songs, edited by Bernard Braley and Alan Luff* (this particular issue was a volume of translations and paraphrases). The...
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MLA style (see MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.)
. "This is the night, dear friends, the night for weeping."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press. Web. 8 Feb. 2026.<
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/t/this-is-the-night,-dear-friends,-the-night-for-weeping>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "This is the night, dear friends, the night for weeping."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed February 8, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/t/this-is-the-night,-dear-friends,-the-night-for-weeping.