. Godhead here in hiding, whom I do adore, Masked by these bare shadows, shape and nothing more, See, Lord, at thy service low lies here a heart Lost, all lost in wonder at the God thou art. 2. Seeing, touching, tasting are in thee deceived: How says trusty hearing? that shall be believed; What God's Son has told me, take for truth I do; Truth himself speaks truly or there's nothing true. 3. On the cross thy godhead made no sign to men, Here thy very manhood steals from human ken: Both are my confession, both are my belief, And I pray the prayer of the dying thief. 4. I am not like Thomas, wounds I cannot see, But can plainly call thee Lord and God as he; Let me to a deeper faith daily nearer move, Daily make me harder hope and dearer love. 5. O thou our reminder of Christ crucified, Living Bread, the life of us for whom he died, Lend this life to me then: feed and feast my mind, There be thou the sweetness man was meant to find. 6. Bring the tender tale true of the Pelican; Bathe me, Jesu Lord, in what thy bosom ran--- Blood whereof a single drop has power to win All the world forgiveness of its world of sin. 7. Jesu, whom I look at shrouded here below, I beseech thee send me what I thirst for so, Some day to gaze on thee face to face in light And be blest for ever with thy glory's sight. Amen.
Psalm 23 A psalm of David. 1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,a]">[a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
I can hardly believe this coincidence, I have had a line of this song in my mind for the past couple of weeks but I didn't know the song...Truth himself speaks truly or there's nothing true. I searched on line and found it, I have been reading it in various translations and playing various versions from YouTube ever since. Amazing to see your post today.
I LOVE this hymn. When I hear it it opens up corridors of memory—benediction of the Blessed Sacrament in the little neighborhood Church where I grew up. The smell of wax and incense. The nuns in the front pews chanting. The huge angel statues holding lamps by the altar. The ruby red sanctuary light. The dark curtained confessionals. The tabernacle. The stairs of Mary and Joseph on either side of the altar in alcoves with candles burning. Blue glass votives for Mary and red for St Joseph. If I don’t ever see this reverence and beauty again on this side of heaven I will surely see it again by God’s grace in the next world. “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone...”(big yellow taxi by Joni Mitchell)
Funny you should mention the way you remember the odors of blessed wax and incense In the past Rarely do I go back to the old neighborhood church where I received my First Holy Communion, but it smells exactly the same as I remember when I do get there Exactly. You could blindfold me and drive me all over the East Coast and drop me off at that church and I would know it instantly! The odor of sanctity
When reading the above beautiful words of adoration to our Lord, they took me to the benedictions of my youth a heaven I rearly get to experience today....my mind also went to the heavenly words of the hymn 'sweet sacrament divine'. 1. Sweet Sacrament divine, Hid in thine earthly home; Lo! Round thy lowly shrine, With suppliant hearts we come; Jesus, to thee our voice we raise, In songs of love and heartfelt praise Sweet sacrament divine Sweet sacrament divine 2. Sweet sacrament of peace, Dear home of every heart, Where restless yearnings cease, And sorrows all depart. There in thine ear, all trustfully, We tell our tale of misery, Sweet sacrament of peace Sweet sacrament of Peace 3. Sweet sacrament of rest, Ark from the ocean’s roar, Within thy shelter blest, Soon may we reach the shore; Save us, for still the tempest raves, Save, lest we think beneath the waves; Sweet sacrament of rest Sweet Sacrament of rest 4. Sweet sacrament divine, Earth’s light and jubilee, In thy far depths doth shine, Thy God head’s majesty: Sweet light, so shine on us, we pray That earthly joys may fade away: Sweet sacrament divine Sweet sacrament divine
Yes Josephite. Exactly. I often find myself singing that refrain or whistling it. How I miss hearing it sung by a reverent choir at Mass or benediction.
My mother used to sing this doing the house wrok as I was growing up all the time. Sometimes when I hear it , it brings tears to my eyes; so many happy memories. Another one she loved was the old Fatima hymn. What a great gift from God to be brought up in a good, devout Catholic home. I remember as my mother was dying of cancer asking her, 'Did you ever doubt?'.. and her reply, 'Are you crazy?'
Lovely! Sounds like my mother and my aunt and a host of other Catholics of that era. May their kind return.
