Tobias Haller at In a Godward Direction reflects on "Popular Religion: Risk and Opportunity". The post and the discussion that follows in the comments is fascinating. In one of his comments, Tobias quotes an excerpt from Gerard Manley Hopkins' poetic translation of a prayer in Latin by St Francis Xavier. I looked up the poem, and here it is in its entirety.
O Deus, ego amo te
O GOD, I love thee, I love thee-
Not out of hope of heaven for me
Nor fearing not to love and be
In the everlasting burning.
Thou, thou, my Jesus, after me
Didst reach thine arms out dying,
For my sake sufferedst nails, and lance,
Mocked and marred countenance,
Sorrows passing number,
Sweat and care and cumber,
Yea and death, and this for me,
And thou couldst see me sinning:
Then I, why should not I love thee,
Jesu, so much in love with me?
Not for heaven's sake;
not to be out of hell by loving thee;
Not for any gains I see;
But just the way that thou didst me
I do love and I will love thee:
What must I love thee, Lord, for then?
For being my king and God. Amen.
Lovely, isn't it?
Yes it is. Thanks, Mimi.
ReplyDeleteYou can find another translation of this poem in The Hymnal 1982 at #682, or in The Hymnal 1940 at #456 (if you don't mind the pre-desexed version, the one that has the dreaded m-word in it).
ReplyDeleteIt's been one of my favorite hymns for many years.
dbdonnell, I don't mind the pre-desexed version at all, and I've been a feminist since before the word was in wide use. So far as I'm concerned the prayers and hymns did not need to be changed, for, in my head, I rather easily made the leap from the m-word to humankind.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't made the connection between the hymn and Hopkins' poem. Thanks for pointing it out.
RE: "made the leap from the m-word to humankind."
ReplyDeleteThe very idea, you radical, you!
I have no objections to gender-neutral language, but I do have a general bias against fooling with the writings of others, especially if one has a tin ear and expects a congregation to lustily sing the results of one's meddling.
I wonder why the committee on hymnal revision never asks for my advice . . .
There is this from the 9th century Sufi mystic Rabia al Basri (a woman! shock!):
ReplyDelete"Oh God, If I worship Thee in fear of hell, burn me in hell; and if I worship Thee in hope of Paradise, exclude me from Paradise; but if I worship Thee for Thine own sake, withhold not Thine everlasting beauty!"
I have always been deeply consoled by the principle of loving God for God's own sake. It is the only sure antidote for looking upon God as a commodity.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the prayer this morning, Mimi. Just what I needed today.
db, I have no objection to gender-neutral language either, but the wording in some of the older hymns comes out quite awkward when the change is made. I find myself distracted and amused by the awkwardness, rather than focused on the meaning of the hymn. You are not alone. No one asks me what I think.
ReplyDeleteCounterlight, that's lovely. The Sufis offer much that is of value to those of different faiths. Ann sent me the same quote in an email.
Ellie, so true. So often God seems to be offered as a ticket to heaven or as as a ticket to prosperity, like an ATM card that never runs out of money.
Mimi, I first came to this text when, as a member of the choir of men and boys at St Luke in the Fields we sang a setting by Ned Rorem, which, IIRC was composed for the parish. It is a powerful poem, and the setting was lovely....
ReplyDeleteTobias, the music at St. Luke's was beautiful when I attended a service there a month or so ago, and now I learn that the tradition is not new.
ReplyDeleteI love the poem. I remember hearing as a child that the most perfect penitence was pure and for the love of God, but I could not honestly say that mine was pure back then. I feared hellfire. But somewhere along the way, without striving on my part, my sorrow for transgressions came to be because of God's great love for me and my love for God. Thus the grace of God does its work in us if we remain open to the Spirit.