Praise of the Holy Cross
PRAISE OF THE HOLY CROSS
1) ollower of life's perfection, May your heart be ever joyful As you see the Cross divine; Let the Holy Cross be present In your soul and meditation:
To its rule your life resign.
2) Keep it close, with Christ for Leader, Till you live in light so brilliant That all doubt is cast away; Weary not and slacken never, That your heart be set afire With a flame as bright as day.
3) Love the Cross, creations beacon:
Then will Christ become your Leader, Reign as your eternal King; Wrap the Cross around your body; With it, bind all; with it, sign all:
Place its mark on everything.
2 ST. BONAVENTURE — OPUSCULA II
4) Heart and Cross in one another!
This will keep the heart unblemished By pervading it with peace.
Let your speech be Cross-inspired, Praise the Cross and tell its glory, And your song shall never cease.
5) Let the Cross's inner flavor Through the heart and through the senses Spread its sweetness utterly; Let the Cross direct your body, Know its presence all-enclosing In your human entity.
6) Let your heart be Cross-absorbed, Let it meet the Cross in rapture Through the flame of burning love; Let your flesh be free of tempest, Let your mind be Cross-conforming, And your joy be from above.
7) Love with warm and close affection, Sing with special praise and honor, This salvation-bringing Tree; With the fervor of your being, With the sum of all your powers, Cherish it most joyfully.
PRAISE OF THE HOLY CROSS
8) Live within the Cross so noble And with utter exultation Lock yourself in its embrace.
On the Cross with Christ be fastened; Share it with Him, that in heaven You may see Him face to face.
9) Seek the Cross and seek the nailing, Seek in hands and feet the furrow, Seek the hollow in the side; There, be happy; there, be joyful, Truly loving, greatly praising This, the Cross whereon He died!
10) May this pact be never broken:
That the Cross shall go before you So that blessed deeds be done.
In the Cross is potent healing, In the Cross is safe protection From the darts of Zabulon.
11) On the Cross of Christ suspended, Prompted by a heart on fire, Break forth into joyful song; For the Cross defends God's servants.
Holding in itself and showing Perfect life that knows no wrong.
ST. BONAVENTURE — OPUSCULA II
12) Be you tempted or afflicted, Be you faint and almost vanquished, Be you overwhelmed in loss, Linger not in sloth or slowness, But with instant resolution Mark your forehead with the Cross.
13) In your laughter and your weeping, In your song and in your sadness, When you work and when you rest, Be you coming, be you going, Be you healed or yet in sorrow, Press the Cross upon your breast.
14) In the midst of burdens crushing, Trials heavy, hardships bruising, Hold the Cross that all consoles; In the midst of pain and anguish, Sweetest refuge is accorded Unto Cross-abiding souls.
15) Cross of Christ, O gate of heaven, Trust of all the saints and blessed Who have won the victory; Cross of Christ, the world's restoring, By whose virtue God, All-goodness, Made such wondrous things to be!
PRAISE OF THE HOLY CROSS
16) Cross of Christ, the soul's salvation, True and excellent effulgence Filling hearts with sweetness puie; Living fountain of the blessed, Perfect treasure of the perfect, Joy and splendor ever sure!
17) Cross, the mirror of all virtues, Glorious guide to life eternal, Hope of those whose faith is clear; Shining standard of the chosen, Expectation, consolation, Prize of those who persevere!
18) Holy Cross, both ship and harbor, Garden of true delectation Where the fairest blooms are found; Powerful and mighty armor, Safest shelter, sure protection From the demon's every wound!
19) Holy Cross, O tree bejeweled By the blood of the Redeemer, Rich with fruits of savor rare:
Food that nourishes the spirit With the sweetest Gift of heaven, Sustenance without compare!
ST. BONAVENTURE —OPUSCULA II
20) Numberless the fruits you gather If you spend your earthly seasons Searching for the Holy Cross; Without end your delectation If you strive for it unwearied, Counting all earth's gain as loss.
21) Seek the Cross and bear it always, Look to Christ extended on it, Be consumed with love and woe; See the Cross with faith unfathomed, Trust the Cross with hope eternal, All your time on earth below.
22) Let the Cross be all your striving, Let your spirit yield before it, Make it of yourself a part.
This is labor of salvation:
To recall the crucifixion In your words, and deeds, and heart.
23) Bear in mind, O loving brother, Seven times a day to ponder On the Lord's most cruel plight; For it brought us liberation, And the gift of joy eternal, Gift of all-transcending light.
PRAISE OF THE HOLY CROSS
24) If this Cross you love and honor, Praise it at the times appointed.
Sing with careful piety Matin, Prime, Perce, Sext, and Vesper, Sing the hours of None and Complin, Sing to the Divinity.
25) Be you standing, sitting, lying, Be you silent, he you speaking, Be you weary, he you well, Look for Christ your Expectation, Bear the Crucified within you In whatever place you dwell.
26) Strive to be attentive always To the fullness of His sorrow, Try to share His bitter pain; Christian soul, be sad and grieving, Late and early mourn His dying, Yet, in grief, let joy remain.
27) Oh, what insult and contumely Has the King of Heaven suffered To restore the world to grace!
How He thirsted, how He hungered.
How He walked in destitution To the shameful gibbet's place!
ST. BONAVENTURE —OPUSCULA U
28) Bear in mind His utter poorness, See the depth of His debasement, And the pain of it recall; While you have the gift of thinking, Think of His atrocious passion, Bear in mind the myrrh and gall.
29) See: They lead away the Boundless On a Cross to be suspended; His disciples quake and flee.
Now His hands and feet are riven, Now some bitter wine is given To the King in mockery!
30) Now, His blessed eyes are dimming, Now, His sacred face is paling, As upon the Cross He bleeds; In His body, stripped of honor, There remains no trace of beauty:
All His comeliness recedes.
31) Man has sinned, and for that reason Is the flesh of Christ now pinioned.
Torn by cruel stripes and blows; Every limb is stretched in torture By the racking He must suffer And the wounds His body shows.
PRAISE OF THE HOLY CROSS
32) At the summit of His torment, Now He loudly cries to heaven, Breathes His last and hows His head. * Let us groan with deepest sorrow, Let us grieve in heart and spirit:
Now the Only Son is dead!
33) Come you now, O you that listen, Come and mourn the Sole-begotten, Let your heart lament and cry.
Strain your being, wrench your senses.
Force your mind, and place your fingers On the wounds that made Him die.
34) Man of Sorrows, least of mankind — Look upon His strength unflinching In these pains beyond compare; Know it good, and deem it fitting, That you share His cruel dying And the taunts He had to bear.
35) When you find yourself afflicted, Overcome with desolation.
And your soul grows faint and weak, Think of His surpassing anguish, Of the pain and of the jeering, Of the spittle on His cheek!
ST. BONAVENTURE —OPUSCULA II
36) Brother, constantly remember How the Crucified was wounded:
Let His pain become your pain; Take it as a food from heaven, Always present at your table; Savor this life-giving bane.
37) Jesus crucified, support me.
That so long as life is in me I with joy may mourn Your death; That with You I may be wounded, And may hunger to embrace You On the Cross till end of breath!
38) Give to me the dew of sorrow, Let me grieve for You, O Saviour, Christ, Refresher of my soul!
Spurn me not, but ever open Deep in me Your wounds so fruitful:
Open them, and make me whole!
39) May these words which I have spoken Be for honor, praise, and glory Unto Christ the Crucified!
May the glorious King of Heaven Grant me generous forgiveness Of the sins for which He died.
Amen.