In the bleak midwinter

In the bleak midwinter,
frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron,
water like a stone;
Snow had fallen,
snow on snow,
snow on snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter,
long ago.

Our God transcends all heaven,
earth, and its domain;
heaven and earth shall flee away
when Christ come to reign;
In the bleak midwinter
a stable place sufficed
the sovereign God almighty,
Jesus Christ.

Angels and archangels
may have gathered there,
cherubim and seraphim
thronged the midnight air;
But his mother only,
in her maiden bliss,
worshiped the beloved
with a kiss.

What can I offer,
poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd,
I would bring a lamb.
If I were a wise one,
I would do my part;
but what can I offer:
all my heart.

In the bleak midwinter,
frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron,
water like a stone;
Snow had fallen,
snow on snow,
snow on snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter,
long ago.

Music: Cranham Gustav Holst (19th C)
Words: Christina Rossetti (19th C)
Sequence: Dall Forsythe, Church of St. John the Evangelist