Poet Christina Rossetti was born in London December 5, 1830. She was homeschooled, devoutly Anglican, and she never married. Her brother, Dante Gabriel Rossetti was both a poet and a painter. Together with William Morris, John Ruskin, William Holman Hunt, and others, Christina and Dante Gabriel Rossetti were leaders in what came to be called the Pre-Raphelite movement. The Pre-Raphaelites were concerned with medievalism, religious symbolism, and passion and realism in art. I think Eldest Daughter could have been a Pre-Raphaelite.
A Christmas Carol
by Christina Georgina RossettiIn the bleak mid-winter
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 mid-winter
Long ago.Our God, heaven cannot hold Him,
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty
Jesus Christ.Enough for Him whom cherubim
Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk
And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him whom angels
Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
Which adore.Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air,
But only His mother
In her maiden bliss
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
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.
Thank you for posting this. I was just thinking of Rosetti’s lovely lyrics and how refreshing it would be to hear In the Bleak Midwinter on the radio, rather than yet another version of Santa Claus is Coming to Town.
I used to perform that with a folk group I was in, singing the last verse in my best immitation-boy-soprano voice. Another Rosetti hymn I’ve come to love is “None Other Lamb.” A friend of mine had a really rough year last year, and every time she wrote or we spoke, she would mention this hymn as being a comfort to her. The pianist at the church I’m attending plays it during the offertory sometimes, but we don’t get to sing it nearly often enough….
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F.Y.I this is a poem by Christina however it can be sung, as many poems can be. I do believe this is one of Christina’s best works of poetry and it truly reflects the meaning of Christmas.
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