This quintessential Passiontide hymn is the grand finale of a seven-part medieval poem, with each section addressing a different part of Christ’s crucified body: feet, knees, hands, side, breast, heart, and finally, face. Originally written in Latin (Salve caput cruentatum) and now attributed to Arnulf of Leuven, it was translated into German in 1656 by Paul Gerhardt as O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden. The hymn transforms the horrifying crown of thorns into a source of joy for the forgiven sinner, forcing us to confess: "Mine, mine was the transgression." In the Good Friday service, stanzas are interspersed throughout the Passion reading as a sung, penitential response. The famous haunting melody was not originally sacred at all; it was written by Hans Leo Hassler as a secular love song, later arranged into the version we know by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Sung at Our Saviour
2026