Nativity Hymn 2: Blessed Be That Child

Blessed be that Child, who gladdened Bethlehem today! Blessed be the Baby who made humanity young again today! Blessed be the Fruit, who lowered himself to our famished state! Blessed be the Good One, who suddenly enriched our poverty and supplied our needs! Blessed is he whose tender mercies made him stoop down to visit our weaknesses!

Praise to the Fountain that was sent for our propitiation! Praise be to him who set aside the Sabbath by fulfilling it! Praise too to him who rebuked the leprosy, and it did not remain, whom the fever saw and fled! Praise to the Merciful One, who bore our toil! Glory to your coming, which gave life to humankind! [a]

Glory to him who came to us through his Firstborn! Glory to the Silence, who spoke by his Voice! Glory to the One on high, who was seen through his Dawn! Glory to the Spiritual One, who was pleased to have a Body, so that in it his power might be felt, and by that Body he might show mercy to the bodies of his household! [b]

Glory to that Hidden One, whose Son was made manifest! Glory to that Living One, whose Son was made to die! Glory to that Great One, whose Son came down and was small! Glory to the Power who confined his greatness within a form, and his unseen nature within a shape! With eye and mind we have seen him, yes, with both of them.

Glory to that Hidden One, who cannot be felt at all, even with the mind, by those who pry into him, but by his graciousness was felt by the hand of man! The Nature that could not be touched was bound and tied in his hands, and pierced in his feet and lifted up. Of his own will he took a body for those who took him.

Blessed be he whom free will crucified, because he let it! Blessed be he whom the wood also bore, because he allowed it! Blessed be he whom the grave bound, which by this had a limit set to it! Blessed be he whose own will brought him to the womb and to birth, to the arms that held him, and to growth in stature! Blessed is he whose changes purchased life for human nature! [c]

Blessed is he who sealed our soul, and adorned it, and betrothed it to himself! Blessed is he who made our body a tent for his unseen Nature! Blessed is he who by our tongue interpreted his secret things! Let us praise that Voice whose glory is sung with our lute, and his power with our harp. The Gentiles have gathered and come to hear his songs.

Glory to the Son of the Good One, whom the sons of the Evil One rejected! Glory to the Son of the Just One, whom the sons of wickedness crucified! Glory to him who set us free, and was bound for us all! Glory to him who gave the pledge, and redeemed it too! Glory to the Beautiful One, who shaped us to his image! Glory to that Fair One, who did not look at our ugliness!

Glory to him who sowed his Light in the darkness, and was reproached in his hidden state, and covered his secret things! He also stripped off from us and took away the clothing of our filthiness. Glory be to him on high, who mixed his salt into our minds and his leaven into our souls! His Body became Bread, to give life to our deadness. [d]

Praise to the Rich One, who paid for us all what he had not borrowed, and wrote his bond, and even became our debtor! By his yoke he broke from us the chains of the one who led us captive. Glory to the Judge who was judged, and made his Twelve sit in judgment on the tribes, and by unlearned men condemned the scribes of that nation! [e]

Glory to him who could never be measured by us! Our heart is too small for him, yes, our mind is too feeble. He makes our littleness foolish by the riches of his Wisdom. Glory to him who lowered himself and asked questions, so that he might hear and learn what he already knew, so that by his questions he might reveal the treasure of his helping graces! [f]

Let us worship him who enlightened our mind with his teaching, and sought in our hearing a pathway for his words. Let us praise him who grafted his fruit into our tree. Thanks to him who sent his Heir, so that through him he might draw us to himself, yes, make us heirs with him! Thanks to that Good One, the source of all good things!

Blessed is he who did not scold, because he was good! Blessed is he who did not spurn, because he was also just! Blessed is he who was silent, and who rebuked, so that he might give us life by both! Severe was his silence, and full of reproach. Mild was his severity, even when he was accusing; for he rebuked the traitor, and kissed the thief.

Glory to the hidden Farmer of our minds! His seed fell on our ground and made our mind rich. His harvest came a hundredfold into the treasury of our souls! Let us worship him who sat down and rested, and walked along the way, so that the Way was on the way, and the Door too for those who go in, by which they go in to the kingdom. [g]

Blessed is the Shepherd who became a Lamb for our reconciliation! Blessed is the Branch who became the Cup of our redemption! Blessed also be the Cluster, the Fountain of the medicine of life! Blessed also be the Farmer who became Wheat, so that he might be sown, and a Sheaf, so that he might be cut! Blessed be the Architect who became a Tower, our place of safety! Blessed is he who so tuned the feelings of our mind that we should sing with our harp what the mouth of the winged creatures does not know how to sing in its songs! Glory to him who saw how we had chosen to be like animals without reason in our rage and our greed, and came down and became one of us, so that we might become heavenly! [h]

Glory be to him who never felt any need of our praise, yet felt the need because he is kind to us, and thirsted because he loves us, and asks us to give to him, and longs to give to us. His fruit was mingled with us men, so that in him we might come near to him who stooped down to us. By the Fruit of his stem he grafted us into his Tree. [j]

Let us praise him who prevailed and gave us life by his wounds! Let us praise him who took away the curse by his thorns! Let us praise him who put death to death by his dying! Let us praise him who held his peace and counted us righteous! Let us praise him who rebuked death, which had overcome us! Blessed is he whose helping graces cleansed out the left side! [k]

Let us praise him who kept watch and put to sleep the one who led us captive. Let us praise him who went to sleep and chased our deep sleep away. Glory be to God, who healed weak humanity! Glory be to him who was baptized, and drowned our wrongdoing in the deep, and choked the one who choked us! Let us glorify with all our mouths the Lord of all creatures! [l]

Blessed be the Physician who came down and cut away without pain, and healed wounds with a medicine that was not harsh! His Son became a Medicine that showed sinners mercy. Blessed be he who dwelt in the womb and made there a perfect Temple, so that he might dwell in it, a Throne, so that he might be in it, a Garment, so that he might be clothed in it, and a Weapon, so that he might conquer with it.

Blessed be he whom our mouth cannot praise as he deserves, because his Gift is too great for the skill of orators to tell; nor can our powers praise his goodness as it deserves. For however we may praise him, it is too little.

And since it is useless to be silent and to hold ourselves back, may our weakness excuse such praise as we are able to sing.

How gracious he is, who demands no more than our strength can give! How your servant would be condemned for both principal and interest, if he did not give what he could, and refused what he owed! Ocean of glory, who have no need for your glory to be sung, in your goodness accept this drop of praise; for by your Gift you have given my tongue the power to glorify you.