Classic Poem

O J ESU , if the choice were mine,
Either with Thee to drain
The bitter cup of grief and scorn,
Of penury and pain;

Or else, by Thy kind Providence,
In good estate to live,
Enjoying all the purest sweets,
This universe can give:

And if in either case alike,
O my Incarnate Lord,
The merit would be just the same,
As also the reward;

And if through all futurity,
Whichever I might choose,
I neither could by suffering gain,
Nor by enjoyment lose;

Still, O my Jesu, would my choice
Be this, I here proclaim, —
With Thee to suffer want and woe;
With Thee to suffer shame.

Forbid it, Heav'n, that ever I
Should wish, for me or mine,
O Saviour blest, Redeemer dear,
A happier lot than Thine!

For Thou without reserve hast given
Thyself, my God, for me;
And I without reserve intend
To live and die for Thee.