Tag: Paul Gerhardt

Hymn Story: O Sacred Head, Now Wounded

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“O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” is considered a Christian Passion hymn.  It is based on a long Latin poem “Salve mundi salutare” from the Middle Ages. Each of the seven stanzas addresses various part’s of Christ’s body on the cross.  The part this hymn is taken from involved Christ’s head. It is believed Arnulf of Leuven wrote the poem, although […]

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Behind the Hymn: Now Rest Beneath Night’s Shadows

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Now Rest Beneath Night’s Shadows was written by Paul Gerhardt. Gerhardt was born in Gräfenheinichen, Saxony, Germany in 1607. He studied theology and wrote many hymns. He endured much suffering and lived through The Thirty Years War. Four of his five children died young and his wife endured a prolonged illness. Like many other German hymns, Gerhardt’s songs are very […]

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