The Passíusálmar or Passion Hymns are a collection of 50 poetic texts written by the Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

ic priest and poet, Hallgrímur Pétursson

Hallgrímur Pétursson

Hallgrímur Pétursson was one of Iceland's most famous poets and a minister at Hvalneskirkja and Saurbær in Hvalfjörður. The Hallgrímskirkja in Reykjavík and the Hallgrímskirkja in Saurbær are named after him. He was one of the most influential pastors during the Age of Orthodoxy...

. The texts explore the Passion

Passion (Christianity)

The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...

 narrative, as traditionally presented, from the point where Christ

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

 enters the Garden of Gethsemane

Gethsemane

Gethsemane is a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem most famous as the place where, according to Biblical texts, Jesus and his disciples are said to have prayed the night before Jesus' crucifixion.- Etymology :...

 to his death and burial. Hallgrímur began composing the work in 1656, while serving as priest of Saurbær in Hvalfjörður

Hvalfjörður

Hvalfjörður is situated in the west of Iceland between Mosfellsbær and Akranes. The fjord is approximately 30 km long and 5 km wide....

. It took him three years to complete, the final poem being written in May 1659; the first edition was published seven years later, in 1666. By the end of the century they had become so popular in Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

 that five editions had been published. Since that time, they have been reprinted more than 75 times, a unique achievement in Icelandic literature. The poems were translated into many other languages, including Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

, Chinese

Chinese language

The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...

 and Danish

Danish language

Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...

. The first English edition was published in 1913. In the 1950s a new translation was made by Arthur Charles Gook

Arthur Charles Gook

Arthur Charles Gook in London, England is primarily known today for having translated Reverend Hallgrímur Pétursson's Passion Hymns into English....

. This new translation received the imprimatur of the Bishop of Iceland, Sigurbjörn Einarsson

Sigurbjörn Einarsson

Sigurbjörn Einarsson was a doctor of theology and a priest of the Lutheran Church of Iceland. He led the church as the Bishop of Iceland from 1959 to 1981. The current Bishop, Karl Sigurbjörnsson, is his son.-References:...

, and is published by Hallgrímskirkja

Hallgrímskirkja

The Hallgrímskirkja is a Lutheran parish church in Reykjavík, Iceland. At 74.5 metres , it is the largest church in Iceland and the sixth tallest architectural structure in Iceland after Longwave radio mast Hellissandur, the radio masts of US Navy at Grindavík, Eiðar longwave transmitter and...

. In addition, a selection of texts were translated by Anglican Bishop Charles Venn Pilcher

Charles Venn Pilcher

Charles Venn Pilcher was an Anglican bishop and author.Pilcher was born in Oxford and educated at Charterhouse School and Hertford College, Oxford. and ordained in 1903. He was curate of St Thomas’ Birmingham and then domestic chaplain to Handley Moule the Bishop of Durham...

 and published in a pamphlet entitled "Thirty-One Meditations on Christ's Passion"; this translation, although incomplete, is regarded as more true to the Lutheran theology of Hallgrímur Pétursson.

The Passíusálmar quickly became an important part of Icelandic religious expression, being sung or read during Lent in every Icelandic home; today, they are broadcast on the radio during that time of year. They have been set to music by many composers of Icelandic church music, including Þorkell Sigurbjörnsson and Jón Hlöðver Áskelsson, but use outside Iceland is rare.

The Titles of the 50 ‘Passion Hymns’

Hymn I. Christ goes to the Garden

Hymn II. Christ's Suffering in the Garden

Hymn III. “Sorrowful, even unto Death”

Hymn IV. Christ's Appeals to His Disciples

Hymn V. The Jews arrive in the Garden

Hymn VI. Judas' Kiss and Christ's Arrest

Hymn VII. Peter's Defence and Malchus' Wounded Ear

Hymn VIII. Christ's Address to the Jews

Hymn IX. The Flight of the Disciples

Hymn X. The First Enquiry before Caiaphas

Hymn XI. Peter's Denial

Hymn XII. Peter's Repentance

Hymn XIII. The False Witnesses and Caiaphas' Judgment

Hymn XIV. The Soldiers mock Christ

Hymn XV. The Priests' Conference

Hymn XVI. The Remorse of Judas

Hymn XVII. The Potter's Field

Hymn XVIII. The Jews' First Charge before Pilate

Hymn XIX. Christ's Confession before Pilate

Hymn XX. The Jews' Second Charge before Pilate

Hymn XXI. Herod's Curiosity and the Gorgeous Robe

Hymn XXII. The Demand for Crucifixion

Hymn XXIII. The Scourging of Christ

Hymn XXIV. The Scarlet Robe and Crown of Thorns

Hymn XXV. Christ led from the Judgment Hall

Hymn XXVI. Christ and Pilate

Hymn XXVII. Pilate and the Jews

Hymn XXVIII. Pilate's unjust Judgment

Hymn XXIX. Release of Barabbas

Hymn XXX. Christ bears His Cross

Hymn XXXI. Christ's Address to the Women

Hymn XXXII. The Green and the Dry Tree

Hymn XXXIII. The Crucifixion of Christ

Hymn XXXIV. The First Cry from the Cross

Hymn XXXV. The Superscription on the Cross

Hymn XXXVI. Christ's Garments divided

Hymn XXXVII. The Second Cry from the Cross

Hymn XXXVIII. The Mocking suffered on the Cross

Hymn XXXIX. The Thief's Repentance

Hymn XL. The Third Cry from the Cross

Hymn XLI. The Fourth Cry from the Cross

Hymn XLII. The Fifth Cry from the Cross

Hymn XLIII. The Sixth Cry from the Cross

llvmn XLIV. The Seventh Cry from the Cross

Hymn XLV. The Death of Christ

Hymn XLVI. The Signs that accompanied His Death

Hymn XLVII. Christ's Friends, who stood far off

Hymn XLVIII. The Saviour's wounded Side

Mymn XLIX. The Burial of Christ

Hymn L. The Guard on Watch