Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153; see SDAH 156) wrote a long poem of about 48 stanzas entitled “Jesu, dulcis memoria” (“Jesus, Sweet Memory), probably after the disastrous Second Crusade, which he fostered, and during his retirement in about 1150. It is now known as the “Joyful, or Jubilee, Rhythm of St. Bernard on the Name of Jesus.” There have been many translations of this hymn (for example, SDAH 242), this one by Edward Caswall (1814-1878; see SDAH 43.) Bernard also wrote hymns SDAH 156, “O Sacred Head Now Wounded” and 242, “Jesus Thou Joy of loving Hearts.” Caswall also translated hymn SDAH 43,” When Morning Gilds the Skies.”

        Caswall’s translation is entitled “St. Bernards’ Hymn; or, The Loving Soul’s Jubilation.” The original hymn has five parts, and each part ranges from 9 to 11 four-line stanzas. The SDAH hymn consist of the first four stanzas of Part I plus the last or tenth stanza of Part IV except that the very last line originally was “My Hope, my victory.”

        ST. AGNES, also used for SDAH 269, “Come, Holy Spirit,” and SDAH 655, “Happy the Home,” was composed in 1866 by John Bacchus Dykes (1823-1876; see Biographies), especially for these words. The name commemorates a young Roman girl, Agnes, who was martyred for her faith at the tender age of 13 in A.D. 304 under the persecution of Diocletian. She had refused to be married to a Roman nobleman because she had given her heart to the Lord Jesus; her dying words could well have been the sentiment of this hymn.