I Love Thee, O Thou Lord Most High NLPHB 105

I somehow skipped this one – mea culpa.

…and just to show that, despite my occasional bleating, not every traditional hymn in this book is a Protestant cuckoo in a Catholic nest, this one is very Catholic.

The original Latin text was by St Ignatius Loyola from C16 and was translated by Edward Caswell, an Anglican priest who did the very C19 thing of becoming a Catholic – Cardinal Newman and all that. Having sadly lost his wife to cholera he was able to become a Catholic priest too.

It is set to a lovely Irish traditional tune, HURLEY (aka DANIEL), here arranged by John de Luca in D, which is too high for me, and vaguely in 4/4. Percy Jones’ arrangement in the Pius X Hymnal is in even higher in E and vaguely in 3/4 but it seems not to matter much.

As a love song to God, it would fit in well with Hillsong, but I’m struggling with a liturgical place for it – Pius X/Percy Jones suggests Trinity?

The text below is what is found in this hymnal, which is half modernised with a fair bit of “alt” going on and in places makes no sense – the less redacted lyrics in the Pius X hymnal below make somewhat more sense.

My backing uses chords I made up and inserted rests.

1 I love thee, O thou Lord most high,
Because you first have loved me;
I seek no other liberty
Than that of being bound to thee.

2 May memory no thought suggest
But shall to your pure glory tend,
My understanding find no rest
Except in you its only end.

3 All that you ask all mine is yours:
Say but the word, me shall be done;
I know your love, all-gracious Lord,
I know it seeks my good alone.

4 Apart from you all things are naught;
So grant, O my most gentle guide,
Grant me to love you as I ought,
Ever with you now to abide.