In the little churches where I first learned stories of Jesus, art and architecture seldom referred to the cross; a cross raised in our midst never showed the suffering Jesus. Instead, the empty cross showed us the way, we were told, to the risen Christ.

Yet devotion to the Passion, to remembering the pains and sufferings endured by our Lord, is basic -- even necessary -- to Christianity. Our plain buildings did not invoke the theme, but meditating on the Passion of Jesus Christ infused our hymns and songs.

Here is a selection of hymns devoted to the Passion which were sung in some American Protestant churches until the late twentieth century. Where possible, each page includes links to information about the hymn's history and to music available on the Web.

Sacred Wounds
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
Lo, He Comes With Clouds Descending
Lead Me to Calvary
Draw Me Nearer
Savior, When in Dust to Thee

Calvary and the Cross
At Calvary
Beneath the Cross of Jesus
I Am Coming to the Cross
I Saw the Cross of Jesus
In the Cross of Christ I Glory
Man of Sorrows
The Old Rugged Cross
The Way of the Cross Leads Home