Agnus Dei (liturgy) Agnus Dei (liturgy) In the Mass of the Roman Rite and also in the Eucharist of the Anglican Communion, the Lutheran Church, and the Western Rite of the Orthodox Church the Agnus Dei is the invocation to the Lamb of God sung or recited during the fraction of the Host. The Syrian custom of a chant addressed to the Lamb of God was introduced into the Roman Rite Mass by Pope Sergius I (687–701) in the context of his rejection of the Council of Trullo (692), which was well received in the Byzantine East and called the Quinisext Council, but
Holy Family with Christ as Imperator mundi the Baptist" (Dresden). It may be the earliest in the series and takes a more traditional approach, with the infant Christ and John the Baptist standing on a simple parapet and a black background, rather than the curved parapet and more nuanced background in the London example. John holds a scroll bearing Ecce Agnus Dei and points to Christ, who is shown as 'imperator mundi' or 'emperor of the world', holding a cross and an orb. There are gold highlights on the Virgin's veil, whilst behind her is a female saint, most probably her mother saint Anne or perhaps John's