by St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1091 - 1153)
Translation by Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844 - 1889)
Jesu Dulcis Memoria
Language: English  after the Latin
Jesus to cast one thought upon Makes gladness after He is gone, But more than honey and honeycomb Is to come near and take Him home. [No music so can touch the ear, No news is heard of such sweet cheer]1, Thought half [so dear]2 there is not one As Jesus God the Father's Son. Jesu, their hope who go astray, So kind to those who ask the way, So good to those who look for Thee, To those who find what must Thou be? Jesu, a springing well Thou art, Daylight to head and treat to heart, And matched with Thee there's nothing glad [That men have wished for or have had]3. To speak of that no tongue will do Nor letters suit to spell it true: But they can guess who have tasted of What Jesus is and what is love. Wish us Good morning when we wake And light us, Lord, with Thy day-break. Beat from our brains the thicky night And fill the world up with delight. Who taste of Thee will hunger more, Who drink be thirsty as before: What else to ask they never know But Jesus' self, they love Him so. * And a sweet singing in the ear And in the mouth a honey zest And drinks of heaven in the breast. Thou art the hope, Jesu my sweet, The soul has in its sighing-fit; The loving tears on Thee are spent, The inner cry for Thee is meant. Be our delight, O Jesu, now As by and by our prize art Thou, And grant our glorying may be World without end alone in Thee.
R. Woollen sets stanzas 1-3, 5, 4, 6, 10
1 Woollen: "Song never was so sweet in ear,/ Word never was such news to hear"
2 Woollen: "as sweet"
3 Woollen: "That can be wished or can be had"
Authorship:
- by Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844 - 1889), "Jesu, dulcis memoria" [an adaptation] [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Latin by St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1091 - 1153)
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Russell Woollen (1923 - 1994), "Jesu Dulcis Memoria", 1959, first performed 1959, stanzas 1-3,5,4,6,10 [ high voice and piano ], from Suite for High Voice, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Thomas A. Gregg
This text was added to the website: 2021-12-25
Line count: 40
Word count: 273