GLORIA
Daniel Pinkham
(Sung in Latin and English)
Glory to God in the highest
And on Earth to men of good will, peace and love abiding.
O be joyful in the Lord, ye nations,
With gladness serve the Lord, with gladness serve ye Him.
Come before Him, come before His presence,
Come unto Him with singing, joy, and exultation.
Now know ye: know that the Lord He is God, strong and mighty.
He created us and not we ourselves. Alleluia!
CONVIDANDO ESTA LA NOCHE
Juan Garcia de Zéspedes
(Sung in Spanish)
The night is an invitation
Here for various bands,
To the newborn baby
Let us sing tender songs of praise.
Ah, how I burn, divine Master!
In the beauty of your little eyes!
Ah, how a hundred bright stars pour down.
Rays of glory! Rays of fire!
THE WORD WAS GOD
Rosephanye Powell
In the beginning was the Word,
And the Word was with God,
And the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by Him;
And without Him was not any thing made that was made.
—Text from John 1:1-3
A BOY WAS BORN
Bob Chilcott
A Boy was born in Bethlehem,
Rejoice for that, Jerusalem!
Alleluya.
He let Himself a servant be,
That all mankind He might set free:
Alleluya.
Then praise the Word of God who came
To dwell within a human frame:
Alleluya.
—German chorale ‘Ein Kind geborn zu Bethlehem’, Translation by Percy Dearmer
THE SHEPHERD AND THE KING
Brian Holmes
The Shepherd and the King, the Angel and the Ass,
They heard sweet Mary sing when her joy was come to pass;
They heard sweet Mary Sing to the Baby on her knee.
Sing again, sweet Mary, and we will sing with thee!
Earth, bear a berry! Heaven bear a light!
Man, make you merry on Christmas Night.
The Oxen in the stall, the Sheep upon the hill,
They are waking all to hear sweet Mary still.
The Baby is a Child and the Child is running free.
Sing again, sweet Mary, and we will sing with thee.
The People in the land, so many million strong,
All silently do stand to hear Sweet Mary’s song.
The Child He is a man, and the Man hangs on a tree.
Sing again, sweet Mary, and we will sing with thee.
The stars that are so old, the grass that is so young,
They listen in the cold to hear Sweet Mary’s tongue.
The Man’s the Son of God, and in heaven walketh He.
Sing again, sweet Mary, and we will sing with thee.
—Eleanor Farjeon
HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING (Audience Sing)
Felix Mendelssohn, arr. Walter Pelz
Verse 1 – Audience:
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king!”
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled.”
Joyful all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies,
With angelic host proclaim:
“Christ is born in Bethlehem.”
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king!”
Verse 2 – Choirs:
Christ by highest heaven adored,
Christ, the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of the virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see,
Hail the incarnate Deity,
Pleased as man with us to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king!”
Verse 3 – Audience:
Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
Risen with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that we no more may die,
Born to raise us from the Earth,
Born to give us second birth.
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born king!”
—Charles Wesley (1753) alt.
AFRICAN NOEL
André Thomas
Sing Noel, sing we all Noel.
O Come, ye people, gather here
To hear the news of good cheer.
The King of kings, the Lamb of God
Is born today in Bethlehem.
LOS PECES EN EL RIO
Traditional, arr. Ken Berg
(Sung in Spanish)
The Virgin Mary combs her lovely precious hair
As she gives thanks for her Baby Boy.
Even she cannot understand why God chose her
To be the mother of such a Baby as this.
But the fishes in the river are so delighted
That they see this Holy Child.
They swim and swim and swim some more
For joy of seeing the Savior born.
The Virgin Mary washes the swaddling clothes
And hangs them on the rose bush.
While the birds of the air sing in praise
And the roses begin to bloom.
—Translation by Ken Berg
THE DREAM ISAIAH SAW
Glenn Rudolph
Lions and oxen will sleep in the hay,
Leopards will join with the lambs as they play,
Wolves will be pastured with cows in the glade,
Blood will not darken the earth that God made.
Little child whose bed is straw,
Take new lodgings in my heart.
Bring the dream Isaiah saw,
Life redeemed from fang and claw.
Peace will pervade more than forest and field,
God will transfigure the Violence concealed,
Deep in the heart and in systems of gain,
Ripe for the judgment the Lord will ordain.
Little child whose bed is straw,
Take new lodgings in my heart.
Bring the dream Isaiah saw,
Justice purifying law.
Nature reordered to match God’s intent,
Nations obeying the call to repent,
All of creation completely restored,
Filled with the knowledge and love of the Lord.
Little child whose bed is straw,
Take new lodgings in my heart.
Bring the dream Isaiah saw,
Knowledge, wisdom, worship, awe.
—Thomas H. Troeger
12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS (Audience Sing)
Traditional English Carol
On the ______ day of Christmas my true love gave to me,
1. A partridge in a pear tree
2. Two turtle doves
3. Three French hens
4. Four calling birds
5. Five gold rings
6. Six geese a-laying
7. Seven swans a-swimming
8. Eight maids a-milking
9. Nine ladies dancing
10. Ten lords a-leaping
11. Eleven pipers piping
12. Twelve drummers drumming
RESONET IN LAUDIBUS
Alice Parker
(Sung in Latin)
Let our voices sound with joy, welcoming this baby boy,
Sion’s children, with us join to sing the Son, the Holy One of Mary.
Rejoicing, Christ is born this holy day!
Rejoicing, Mary’s Son is born today.
Sion, let his praise begin! Tiny Child, all free from sin,
Come from heaven our souls to win:
We sing the Son, the Holy One of Mary.
Rejoicing, Christ is born this holy day!
Rejoicing, Mary’s Son is born today.
Born is our Emmanuel, named by angel Gabriel,
Long ago Ezekiel foretold the Son, the Holy One of Mary.
Rejoicing, Christ is born this holy day!
Rejoicing, Mary’s Son is born today.
Run together, everyone! Shout the praise of God’s own Son,
Let His will on earth be done and follow Him, the little Son of Mary.
Rejoicing, Christ is born this holy day!
Rejoicing, Mary’s Son is born today!
—from Walther’s Gesangbuch, 1544, translated by Alice Parker
WHAT SWEETER MUSIC
Michael Fink
What sweeter music can we bring
Than a carol, for to sing
The birth of this our heavenly King?
Awake the voice! Awake the string!
Heart, ear, and eye, and everything!
Awake! Awake! The while the active finger
Runs division with the singer.
—Robert Herrick
NOW WINTER NIGHTS
Roderick Williams OBE
Now winter nights enlarge
The number of their hours;
And clouds their storms discharge
Upon the airy towers.
Let now the chimneys blaze
And cups o’erflow with wine,
Let well-turned words amaze
With harmony divine.
Now yellow waxen lights
Shall wait on honey love
While youthful revels, masques, and courtly sights
Sleep’s leaden spells remove.
This time doth well dispense
With lovers’ long discourse;
Much speech hath some defense,
Though beauty no remorse.
All do not all things well;
Some measures comely tread,
Some knotted riddles tell,
Some poems smoothly read.
The summer hath his joys,
And winter his delights;
Though love and all his pleasures are but toys,
They shorten tedious nights.
—Thomas Campion
GLORIA
from Missa Kenya
Paul Basler
(Sung in Latin)
Glory be to God on high; and on earth, peace, goodwill toward all.
We praise Thee. We bless Thee. We worship Thee. We glorify Thee.
We give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory.
O Lord God, heavenly King, God the Father Almighty;
O Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ;
O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
Thou that takest away the sins of the world; have mercy upon us.
Thou that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer.
Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father,
Have mercy upon us.
For Thou only art holy; Thou only art the Lord;
Thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost,
Art most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
Traditional Carol, arr. Jussi Chydenius
What Child is this, who, laid to rest,
On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?
Refrain:
This, this is Christ, the King,
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing:
Haste, haste to bring Him laud,
The Babe, the Son of Mary!
So bring Him incense, gold, and myrrh,
Come, peasant, king to own Him.
The King of kings salvation brings;
Let loving hearts enthrone Him. Refrain:
—William Chatterton Dix
CHILDREN, GO WHERE I SEND THEE
Negro Spiritual, arr. Kevin Phillip Johnson
Children go where I send thee!
How shall I send thee?
I’m gonna send thee one by one.
One for the little bitty baby
Wrapped in a swaddlin’ clothin’
Layed down in a manger that’s born in Bethlehem.
Children go where I send thee!
How shall I send thee?
I’m gonna send thee two by two,
Two for Paul and Silas,
One for the little bitty baby
Wrapped in a swaddlin’ clothin’
Layed down in a manger that’s born in Bethlehem.
Children go where I send thee!
How shall I send thee?
I’m gonna send thee ten by ten,
Ten for the ten commandments.
Nine for the nine that dressed so fine,
Eight for the eight that stood at the gate,
Seven for the seven that went up to heaven,
Six for the six that never got fixed,
Five for the gospel preachers,
Four for the four that stood at the door,
Three for the Hebrew children,
Two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty baby
Wrapped in a swaddlin’ clothin’
Layed down in a manger that’s born in Bethlehem.
Spoken word:
Story that I’m writing seed to sow is never ending
Everlasting to everlasting and you know it’s on to heaven,
You get the God message in the aim is a lesson
And quit the instant messin’ and the messages are festerin’.
Softening our hearts and it’s reaching all the people.
We do this in the streets and underneath the steeple.
Rather talk the talk but the young ones walk the walk.
They are crawling in the dark but my voice it is the torch.
Drink the milk eat the meat fallin’ at the Savior’s feet.
The sinner take a peek, everybody take a peek
At the heart of the matter he’s the King of Kings.
Married to the church I got the Lord of the rings.
Gold streets where I’m dancing, Father got mansions,
Beauty in God imagine. What do you fathom?
You heard this story to grow. Hey! so it’s time to go!
Love and light so it’s time to go!
Born to us a child is born
And the government will be on his shoulders.
And they will call Him Wonderful Counselor
Almighty God! Everlasting Father!
Children go where I send thee!
How shall I send thee?
PARRANDA
Diana Sáez and Suzzette Ortiz
(Sung in Spanish – Puerto Rican)
This is the parranda that comes from afar,
Wishing everyone a happy new year.
With Puerto Rican swing we come to sing
With joy this Christmas.
Open the door for me,
For I am in the street
And people will think
That this is a rebuff.
Farewell everyone, for we are leaving now
To all those present, have a happy new year.
Owner of this house, owner of this home
Now I say goodbye to conclude.
This is the parranda that comes from afar,
Wishing everyone a happy new year.
With Puerto Rican swing we come to sing
With joy this Christmas.
JOY TO THE WORLD (Audience Sing)
Lowell Mason, arr. John Rutter
Verse 1 – Audience:
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let ev’ry heart prepare Him room,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n and heav’n and nature sing!
Verse 2 – Choirs:
Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let all their songs employ;
While fields and floods,
Rocks, hills and plains,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy!
Verse 3 – Choirs:
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make his blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as the curse is found.
Verse 4 – Audience:
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders of His love.
—Isaac Watts (1719)
STRANGER STAR
Paul Lohman
Saw you never, in the twilight,
When the sun had left the skies,
Up in heaven, clear stars shining
Through the gloom, like silver eyes?
So of old the wisemen, watching,
Saw a little stranger star,
For they knew the foretold promise,
And they traveled from afar.
Heard you never of the story
How they crossed the desert wild,
Journeyed on o’er plain and mountain
‘Til they found the holy child?
How they opened all their treasure,
To the infant they did bring
Brightest gold and fragrant incense,
Sweetest myrrh in offering?
Know ye not that lowly baby
Was the bright and morning star?
He who came to light our dark world:
Shore to shore, near and afar?
Thus we, too, may seek his cradle;
Our heart’s treasure there present;
Love, and faith, and true devotion
To this child, from heaven sent.
—Cecil Frances Alexander
WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS (Audience Sing)
Nils Lindberg
We wish you a merry Christmas,
We wish you a merry Christmas,
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year.
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin;
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year.
Now bring us some figgy pudding,
Now bring us some figgy pudding,
Now bring us some figgy pudding, And bring some out here.
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin;
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year.
—Arthur Warrell (1939)
