Wounds of Christ

One of our esteemed members the other day described Wesley's hymn, 'Lo,
he comes with clouds descending' as a magnificent exposition of the
devotion to the Five Wounds;  and so it is, among other things.  It may
be remarked further that devotion to the Five Wounds, and the closely
related devotion to the Sacred Heart, have been and still are popular,
not only among Anglicans and Methodists, but among evangelical
protestants, although they may not use exactly this terminology.  

One thinks of the hymn "Rock of Ages" by Augustus Toplady (1740-1778). 
Toplady was in his early years influenced by Wesley, but later moved to
a more extreme Calvinist position and attacked Wesley bitterly. 
Nevertheless the hymn is a devotion to the wounds of Christ:

Rock of ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in thee;
Let the Water and the Blood,
>From thy riven side which flowed
Be of sin the double cure,
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.

One might compare it with the popular Catholic hymn "Soul of my
Saviour", itself a version of the 14th century "Anima Christi":

Soul of my Saviour, sanctify my breast;
Body of Christ, be thou my saving guest.
Blood of my Saviour, bathe me in thy tide,
Wash me with water flowing from his side.

Strength and protection may thy Passion be,
O Blessed Jesu, hear and answer me.
Deep in thy wounds, Lord, hide and shelter me,
So shall I never, never part from thee.

Sir H.W. Baker was a prolific Anglican hymn writer, who produced such
popular hymns as "The King of Love my shepherd is" and "Lord, thy word
abideth".  He also produced this translation of the 17th century
"Dignare me, O Jesus, rogo te":

Jesu, grant me this, I pray,
Ever in thy heart to stay;
Let me evermore abide
Hidden in thy wounded side.

If the evil one prepare,
Or the world, a tempting snare,
I am safe when I abide
In thy heart and wounded side.

If the flesh, more dangerous still,
Tempt my soul to deeds of ill,
Naught I fear when I abide
In thy heart and wounded side.

Death will come one day to me;
Jesu, cast me not from thee:
Dying let me still abide
In thy heart and wounded side.

One might mention another hymn of Wesley's, "Jesu, Lover of my soul",
where the Christian takes refuge from the storms of life in the bosom
of Jesus.  Although the wounded side of Jesus is not specifically
mentioned, I think the familiar image does inform the hymn:

Jesu, Lover of my soul,
Let me to thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll,
While the tempest still is high:
Hide me, O my Saviour, hide,
Till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide, 
O receive my soul at last.

Edward Caswall (1814-78) was a Catholic hymnwriter, but his hymns have
found a ready place in Anglican and Methodist hymnbooks.  This one is a
translation of the 18th century "Quicumque certum quaeritis":

All ye who seek a comfort sure
In trouble and distress,
Whatever sorrow vex the mind,
Or guilt the soul oppress,

Jesus, who gave himself for you
Upon the Cross to die,
Opens to you his sacred Heart;
O to that Heart draw nigh.

Ye hear how kindly he invites;
Ye hear his words so blest -
'All ye that labour come to me,
And I will give you rest.'

O Jesus, joy of Saints on high,
Thou hope of sinners here,
Attracted by those loving words
To thee I lift my prayer.

Wash thou my wounds in that dear Blood
Which forth from thee doth flow;
New grace, new hope inspire, a new
And better heart bestow.

I hope I have not offended by mentioning these post-medieval hymns. 
Some of them, of course, are translations of medieval hymns, and all of
them continue a devotion with its roots in the middle ages but which
endures to the present day.

Doctor Elasticus.
____________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.co.uk address at http://mail.yahoo.co.uk
or your free @yahoo.ie address at http://mail.yahoo.ie


%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%