Hymn History Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts

  • August 28, 2011
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Hymn History Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts Jesus, Thou Joy of loving hearts, Thou Fount of life, Thou Light of men, From the best bliss that earth imparts, We turn unfilled to Thee again. Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood; Thou savest those that on Thee call; To them that seek Thee Thou art good, To them that find Thee all in all. We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread, And long to feast upon Thee still; We drink of Thee, the Fountainhead, And thirst our souls from Thee to fill. Our restless spirits yearn for Thee, Wherever our changeful lot is cast; Glad when Thy gracious smile we see, Blessed when our faith can hold Thee fast. O Jesus, ever with us stay, Make all our moments calm and bright; Chase the dark night of sin away, Shed over the world Thy holy light. Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153) This is a very old hymn written by Bernard of Clairvaux. Clairvaux was a nobleman by birth born in a castle to a noble knight; but gave up all his riches and luxuries to follow Christ. He became a monk and focused mainly on Jesus as was the custom of his religion. He did change the system of that order by becoming a public figure. He challenged popes and political and religious leaders of his day to live righteous. He also organized many evangelistic campaigns. Bernard took the religious order of being a monk and used the position to draw others to Christ. Before Bernard, monks rarely spoke or associated with anyone else. Bernard was a man of ex¬cep¬tion¬al pi¬e¬ty and spir¬it¬u¬al vi¬tal¬i¬ty. Four hundred years after Bernard’s death, Mar¬tin Lu¬ther referred to him as, “the best monk that ever lived, whom I ad¬mire be¬yond all the rest put to¬ge¬ther.”


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