A Christmas Poem by Richard Crashaw

At Bethlehem

Come, we shepherds, whose blest sight

Hath met Love's noon in nature's night;

Come, lift we up our loftier song,

And wake the sun that lies too long.

Gloomy night embraced the place

Where the noble infant lay:

The Babe looked up and showed his face;

In spite of darkness, it was day:-

It was the Day, Sweet! and did rise

Not from the east, but from thine eyes.

We saw thee in thy balmy nest,

Young dawn of our eternal day;

We saw thine eyes break from their east

And chase the trembling shades away;

We saw thee (and we bless the sight),

We saw thee by thine own sweet light.

Welcome, all wonders in one sight!

Eternity shut in a span!

Summer in Winter! Day in night!

Heaven in earth! and God in man!

Great Little One, whose all-embracing birth

Lifts earth to heaven, stoops heaven to earth.

~~~~~

This wonderful short poem was written by Richard Crashaw (1613-49) who became an ordained Parish priest, but is primarily known as an English poet of Christian poetry which is full of vibrant stylistic ornamentation and indicates a brilliant wit.

Richard, the son of of a learned and enthusiastic Puritan minister, was educated at Cambridge, where he learned Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Spanish and Italian. In the same year as his graduation, 1634, he published "Epigrammatum Sacrorum" (A book of Sacred Epigrams). which consists of of a collection of Latin verse on Biblical subjects. He help a fellowship at Peterhouse, Cambridge, a centre of High Church thoughts and ideas, where he was ordained.

During the first Civil War, (1642-51), Richard's position at Peterhouse became increasingly difficult and then impossible to maintain, as a result of his increasing inclination to Roman Catholicism. He finally decided to resign his post before the Puritans could get round to evicting him. He then began preparing his first edition of "Steps to the Temple, Sacred Poems, with other Delights of the Muses" which was published in 1646. This incorporated Christian and secular poems, both in Latin and English.

In 1644, Richard Crashaw went to France, where he became a Roman Catholic. Two years later, when Queen Henrietta Maria of England, consort to Charles I, moved to Paris with her entourage, Richard was found by his fellow poet and friend, Abraham Cowley, living in poverty. The Queen arranged for him to be sent to Rome with a strong recommendation being made to the Pope, but he was assigned to a cardinal who merely made him a member of his household. Only a few months before his death was he to receive the position of canon of the cathedral of Santa Casa (Holy House) at Loreto.

Richard Crashaw's Christian English poems, entitled "Carmen Deo Nostro" ("Hymn to our Lord") were republished in Paris in 1652. This publication was illustrated with 12 of his drawings, and included some additional poems with some of his finest lines, those appended to "The Flaming Heart," a poem about St. Teresa of Avila.

Owing to the fact that he had read a lot of works by the Italian and Spanish mystics, Richard's poems reflected very little of the English metaphysical poets, but featured more of the flamboyant imagery of the continental Baroque poets. The standard text of his poems was edited by L.C. Martin (1927), which appeared in a revised edition in 1957.

In "At Bethlehem" we see a wonderful projection of what it must have been like as a shepherd, to have experienced the angels' appearance in the field near Bethlehem. We can imagine the feelings of being "sore afraid" and the announcement of good news, (the solo verse) "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." This announcement is followed by what must have sounded like a glorious heavenly choral performance, featuring a multitdude of the heavenly host praising God with "Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Looking with hindsight through 2,000 years of history, we can honestly say that peace and goodwill toward men are more needed today than they ever were, with a broken and divided world, of warring factions, self-seeking and political and religious divisions.

"At Bethlehem" describes the salvation and deliverance that God brought about by sending His only Son, Jesus into a dark world to save us from sin and deliver us from sin, ourselves and evil. The poem draws out the contrasts between darkness and light, nature's night and Love's noon. A smile from the baby Jesus brings daylight to the darkest night, love to the hardest heart. The sun rises here, not from the east but from the Saviour's eyes. It is often said that the eyes are the light of the soul. No light was needed to see the Saviour, because light shone from His face. In the Gospel of John 8:12 Jesus says of Himself, "I am the Light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

After reading about the light from the eyes of Jesus "chasing the trembling shades away" in the third stanza, more contrasts are added to the wonders of that night of the Incarnation in the final section. We read of "Eternity shut in a span" which is another aspect of the wonder of the Incarnation, God becoming completely man and yet remaining completely God. God is eternal and exists in time and yet in Jesus He experienced the restrictions and constraints of time and space, "Heaven in earth! and God in man!" The juxtaposition of the words "Great" and "Little" in the penultimate line reveal afresh to us the humility of Jesus which we are called to follow in Philippians 2:3-11 as we seek to be His followers and servants.

The reference to Jesus' "all-embracing birth" signifies that salvation and redemption are available to all who believe in Him and receive Him as their Lord and Saviour, John 1:12-13.

Take time if you can, this Christmas, to meditate on the experience of the shepherds keeping watch over their sheep by night, by reading this poem again and the historical account in the Gospel of Luke 2:1-20. May it be the most blessed Christmas you have experienced so far in your life!

A Most Beautiful Advent Carol

"O COME, O COME, EMMANUEL

O Come, O come, Emmanuel,

and ransom captive Israel,

that mourns in lonely exile here,

until the Son of God appear:

Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, thou Rod of Jesse, free

thine own from Satan's tyranny;

from depths of hell thy people save,

and give them victory o'er the grave:

Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer

our spirits by thine advent here;

disperse the gloomy clouds of night,

and death's dark shadows put to flight:

Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, thou Key of David, come,

and open wide our heavenly home;

make safe the way that leads on high,

and close the path to misery:

Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, thou Lord of Might,

who to thy tribes, on Sinai's height,

in ancient times didst give the law

in cloud and majesty and awe;

Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel

shall come to thee, O Israel.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I think from the first time I heard "O Come, O come, Emmanuel," a chord was struck deep within me. I can't remember where I first heard it, but its origin or obvious influence from plainchant, plus its being in a minor key, had a haunting effect on my barely awakened musical imagination, as I was so young (and a late developer).

The version which we sing in English today is a translation of the Latin text, originally named "Veni, veni, Emmanuel." The translation we sing every year, almost without fail, was made by John Mason Neale and Henry Sloane Coffin in the mid-19th. Century. In its latest English advent (excuse the pun), it is a metrical version of a collation of various Advent Antiphons (the acrostic "O Antiphons), and it has now probably become our most popular Advent hymn in the UK. Although its origins are unknown, it is believed that the antiphons are from at least as far back as the 8th. Century, but in its form as "Veni, veni Emmanuel" it is most likely to be of 12th. Century origin.

John Mason Neale (1818-1866)

Henry Sloane Coffin (1877-1954)

The content, reading the words, would be immediately recognized by Old testament scholars as coming from Isaiah 7:14, where we read in the King James Version, "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel." The word virgin, used here is the unique Hebrew term "almah". A comparison with the other six instances where it occurs, Genesis 24:43, Exodus 2:8, Psalm 68:25, Proverbs 30:19 and Song of Solomon 1:3 and 6:8, shows that it is the most precise term the prophet Isaiah could have chosen to indicate that the young woman in this context was a real virgin. the Septuagint translation of "almah" as "parthenos" (virgin) is correct, as is Matthew 1:23.

That this prophecy must refer to the virgin birth of Christ is obvious, since the virgin is pregnant and yet is still a virgin! You can read Mary's side of this remarkable miracle in Luke 1:26-37 which ends with words which I love using, "With God nothing shall be impossible." (verse 37). To read Joseph's side of the events read Matthew 1:18-25, where we also see the fulfillment of the Isaiah prophecy, cited directly from the prophet in verse 23, "Behold a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which being interpreted is, "God with us." "

I would now like to draw out some significant themes from the Advent hymn as we know it in its contemporary form, which emphasisze the completeness of the work of Jesus in coming into the world as God in human form, becoming our Savior and delivering us from sin, flesh (ourselves), the Devil and even triumphing over and defeating death itself!

Verse 1 expresses the longing Israel had for the coming of the Messiah to ransom Israel, enslaved to the Romans. That is why they didn't recognize Jesus as the Messiah, because He had not come to deliver their nation at that time from the Romans, but in His eternal purposes had come to save the whole world from sin and ultimately free the whole of mankind from slavery and bring about His everlasting Kingdom of Justice, Righteousness, and Peace. This is, of course, looking forward to His second coming, which we also do during Advent.

Verse 2 focuses on the descendant of King David, his greater Son, coming to deliver us from Satan's tyranny, hell and death itself. To all who receive Him, Jesus, they have the right to become children of God, John 1:12.

Verse 3 speaks to me of the ongoing work of Jesus in our daily lives, as He lives within us by His Holy Spirit, once we have believed and received Him into our hearts and lives, John 1:33. He cheers us by His presence here, dispersing the gloomy clouds of night and putting death's dark shadows to flight!

Verse 4 reminds us that the gates of Heaven are now open to us, of which we occasionally get glimpses when we pray, praise and worship God, especially in the presence of His gathered people. He has effectively opened wide our heavenly home and is busy building and preparing a place for us there, even now!

Verse 5 speaks to us, reminding us that our God is a Lord of Might, reminding us of how He appeared to give the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. I think it is interesting how this hymn moves back in time for this last verse. We have an eternal God who exists outside time, which is only part of His creation, it is only us who work chronologically. How strange it must have been for Jesus, God Incarnate, to be confined to a time/space continuum. In fact there were times when He felt led to move out of it as in Luke 24:31 and John 20:19.

The whole point of Advent, if we know Jesus, is that it is a time to Rejoice, because we know that He is living and active in our lives now, day by day and He is coming again to take us to be with Himself. What greater cause is there than this to sing again this Advent, "Rejoice! rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel."

"Truly our hearts can rejoice with God's people of all ages when we realize that Christ the Messiah did come 2,000 years ago and accomplished a perfect redemption for Adam's hopeless race. yet we wait with the same urgent expectancy, as did the Israelites of old, for the piercing of the clouds - His second coming, when victory over sin and death will be final." ~ Anonymous