Ryan’s parish also did this one, which while new to me is centuries old.
The lyrics are here by Henry William Baker and based on a text from Bernard of Clairvaux and Paul Gerhardt.
The tune is the Passion Chorale from Bach’s St Matthew Passion, which he got from Hans Leo Hassler. As soon as I made a backing of this I thought it was Paul Simon’s “American Tune.” It is suggested that Simon got it from a folk song called “Because All Men Are Brothers.” A lot of borrowing is going on so I hope Hans is fine with that.
Hymnary have the sheet music although I got it from TIS 339 where it sets a different translation of Gerhardt and Bernard’s work by James Waddell Alexander called “O Sacred Head Sore Wounded”.
This song is also available in the new Catholic Worship Book II, number 330 – modernized version.
Thanks, Trish. I see it’s even in CWB I 776 which adds the detail that the third verse is translated by Arthur Tozer Russell.
I wonder how CWB II is going. In a contest between all that hard work and the recommendation of the bosses against the reluctance of parishes to spend money on liturgy when they already have many of the songs in other volumes, I bet on lack of money.
Geoff