Ritröð Guðfræðistofnunar - 01.09.1994, Side 130

Einar Sigurbjörnsson
heiður er mér að háðung þín,
hver sem mér niðra vildi.
Höggin, sem leiðstu, hressa mig,
á himnum verð ég nú fyrirþig
metinn í mesta gildi.
Meðan lífs æð er í mér heit,
eg skal þig, Drottinn, prísa,
af hjartans grunni í hverjum reit
heiður þíns nafns auglýsa.
Feginn vil ég í heimi hér
lilýða og fylgja í öllu þér.
Lát mér þína liðsemd vísa. Amen. (Ps 24.11, 12)
Summary
This article discusses the Passion of Christ as it is described in the gospels
and in the the Hymns of the Passion (Passíusálmar), written by the poet
Hallgrímur Pétursson. These Hymns have had a tremendous influence
upon the religious development of the Icelandic nation. The Passion has
always fascinated Christians. The mystical theology of the medieval period
stimulated meditations about the Passion, which came to be viewed as an
instrument for self-denial and, in consequence, for the strengthening of
faith and the improvement of life. For Christians, mysticism has meant
primarily an intimate relationship with Christ, developed through prayer
and the sacraments, and often depicted as a kind of marriage. Such is the
view taken, for instance, in Luther's book, „The Freedom of a Christian.“
Mysticism had, indeed, a great influence upon Lutheran spirituality
drning the period of Orthodoxy; in this, the Passion was an important
element. In Iceland, this influence was preserved through the Hymns ofthe
Passion, which were first published in 1666 and have since gone through
79 editions. Hallgrímur Pétursson's meditation on the Passion is very
powerful; in his vision, it occm's simultaneously in the past and in the
present. Christ is never far from us; he is intimately present to us, not
least in his suffering, in which he is our brother.
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