This morning's offertory features a hymn text which is often attributed to Bernard of Clairvaux, a French abbot from the early twelfth century. This song calls us to remember the wounded and broken body of Christ as He suffered for us. It is not an activity we can ever particularly enjoy doing, but in the midst of reflecting on this in sorrow, we find buried, beneath our grief and shame, a pearl of joy; we can call this Savior, though "abused and scorned," our own. He suffered because of His love for us; we remember because of our love for Him.
