Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn

"Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn"
Lutheran hymn
Print in the Erfurt Enchiridion, 1524
English	Lord Christ, the only Son of God
Catalogue	Zahn No. 4297a (tune)
Text	by Elisabeth Cruciger
Language	German
Published	1524 (1524)

"Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn" (Lord Christ, the Only Son of God) is a Lutheran hymn by Elisabeth Cruciger. Printed in 1524 in the Erfurt Enchiridion, together with 18 hymns by Martin Luther, it is one of the oldest Lutheran hymns. The text combines Lutheran teaching with medieval mysticism. It has been the basis of musical settings such as Bach's chorale cantata Herr Christ, der einge Gottessohn, BWV 96.

Apart that Elisabeth Cruciger's authorship has been ascertained, little or nothing is known about the genesis of "Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn". The notion that it was modelled after the Christmas hymn "Corde natus ex parentis" ("Of the Father's Heart Begotten"), repeated, for instance, in Bach-scholarship, lost traction in hymnology. The melody of Cruciger's hymn has some similarity with the tune of "Mein Freud möcht sich wohl mehren" ("My Joy Will Increase"), a secular love song known from the Lochamer-Liederbuch (1455).

"Herr Christ, der einig Gotts Sohn" was first published in 1524, both in the Erfurt Enchiridion and in Johann Walter's choral hymnal Eyn geystlich Gesangk Buchleyn in Wittenberg. In the Enchiridion, the hymn appeared with 25 others, 18 by Martin Luther, three by Paul Speratus, one or two by Justus Jonas, one by Erhard Hegenwald, and one attributed to Jan Hus, making this the only hymn in the Enchiridion by a female author.