When people ask what my favorite hymn or Christmas carol is, I tend to chuckle and say it depends on the day! There are many wonderful hymns and it is difficult to choose just one and say, “this is the best!” When I think about Christmas carols specifically, I recall many wonderful hymn writers. Charles Wesley ranks highly with his ability to create vivid pictures through the written word. Isaac Watt’s “Joy to the World” is highly recognizable and a significant addition to our Christmas liturgies (and should be used the other eleven months of the year, but that’s a different post). Another name also comes to mind, and that is Christina Rossetti. Rossetti wrote poems filled with imagery and pious devotion, allowing readers and singers to meditate upon beautiful biblical truths. Probably her most well-known hymn still in use today is “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,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.Heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Incarnate, Jesus Christ.Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.What can I give him, poor as I am?
Christina Rossetti
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a wise man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.
Rosetti’s reference to the cold darkness that encompassed the earth prior to Jesus’s first coming creates a vivid picture for the singer. The initial stanza, “Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone,” reminds the singer that we need a Savior because of our sin. She further lifts our thoughts to heaven and Jesus’s birth, ultimately concluding that we can never bring anything of worth to God; rather, it is only through the blood of Jesus that we can offer anything to our God. The simplicity of the melody that is most often used with this hymn, CRANHAM, allows the melodic line to follow the contour of the text in a beautiful marriage.
If you would like to listen to “In the Bleak Midwinter,” click here.
Another hymn written by Rosetti is “Love Came Down at Christmas.” Again, her writing allows the singer to engage his imagination in picturing stars and angels as he sings. She further references our trinitarian God, accurately portraying the love of the Father for his Son, and that reciprocated love from Jesus to his Father.
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, love divine;
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and angels gave the sign.Worship we the Godhead,
Love incarnate, love divine;
Worship we our Jesus:
But wherewith for sacred sign?Love shall be our token,
Christina Rossetti
Love be yours and love be mine,
Love to God and to all men,
Love for plea and gift and sign.
As I mentioned earlier, Rosetti incorporates a pious devotion in her poetry that helps the singer meditate upon Christ’s incarnation in a beautiful, simplistic manner. Although she includes personal application in her text, the emphasis remains on Christ’s work, not the singer’s. Rosetti’s poem skillfully utilizes both worship and response, and keeps as primary the weight of Christ’s incarnation.
If you would like to listen to “Love Came Down at Christmas,” click here.
I hope you can find a way to incorporate these hymns into your Advent season. Let them help guide you to Scripture and remember the incarnation of our beautiful Savior.
In case you missed my post last week, take a moment to read Worshiping as a Family during Advent.
If you like podcasts (like me!), here is a great one by Scott Aniol on Twelve Hymns of Christmas.
