Festival of Lessons and Carols

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Organ Prelude

It came upon the midnight clear
arr. Noel Rawsthorne (1929-2019)

Welcome and Introduction

Carol: Once in royal David’s city

Verses 1 and 2 are sung by the Choir only.

Verses 3, 4, 5, and 6 are sung by all.

Once in royal David’s city
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her baby
In a manger for his bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little Child.

He came down to earth from heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
And his shelter was a stable,
And his cradle was a stall;
With the poor, and mean, and lowly,
Lived on earth our Saviour holy.

And through all his wondrous childhood
He would honour and obey,
Love, and watch the lowly maiden,
In whose gentle arms he lay,
Christian children all must be
Mild, obedient, good as he.

For he is our childhood’s pattern,
Day by day like us he grew,
He was little, weak and helpless,
Tears and smiles like us he knew;
And he feeleth for our sadness,
And he shareth in our gladness.

And our eyes at last shall see him,
Through his own redeeming love,
For that child so dear and gentle
Is our Lord in heav’n above;
And he leads his children on
To the place where he is gone.

Not in that poor lowly stable,
With the oxen standing by,
We shall see him; but in heaven,
Set at God’s right hand on high;
When like stars his children crowned
All in white shall wait around.

Bidding Prayer

Beloved in Christ, be it this Christmas-tide our care
and delight to hear again the message of the angels,
and in heart and mind to go even unto Bethlehem
and see this thing which is come to pass, and the babe
lying in a manger.

Therefore, let us read and mark in Holy Scripture the
tale of the loving purposes of God from the first days
of our disobedience unto the glorious redemption
brought us by this Holy Child.

But first, let us pray for the needs of the whole world;
for peace on earth and goodwill among all his people;
for unity and brotherhood within the Church he came
to build, and especially in this city and diocese.

And because this of all things would rejoice his heart,
let us remember, in his name, the poor and helpless,
the cold, the hungry and the oppressed; the sick and
them that mourn, the lonely and the unloved; the aged
and the little children; all those who know not the Lord
Jesus, or who love him not, or who by sin have grieved
his heart of love.

Lastly, let us remember before God all those who rejoice
with us, but upon another shore, and in a greater light,
that multitude which no man can number, whose hope
was in the Word made flesh, and with whom in the Lord
Jesus we are for ever one.

These prayers and praises let us humbly offer up to the
throne of heaven, in the words which Christ himself hath
taught us:

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Choir: Of the Father’s heart begotten

Of the Father’s heart begotten,
Ere the world from chaos rose,
He is Alpha: from that Fountain
All that is and hath been flows;
He is Omega, of all things
Yet to come the mystic Close,
Evermore and evermore.

O how blest that wondrous birthday,
When the Maid the curse retrieved,
Brought to birth mankind’s salvation,
By the Holy Ghost conceived;
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
In her loving arms received,
Evermore and evermore.

Sing, ye heights of heav’n his praises;
Angels and archangels sing!
Where-so-e’er ye be, ye faithful,
Let your joyous anthems ring,
Ev’ry tongue his name confessing,
Countless voices answering,
Evermore and evermore.

Words: Aurelius Prudentius (c. 348-413)
translated by Robert Davis (1866-1937)
Music: Plainsong melody
adapted by Theodoricus Petrus in ‘Piae Cantiones’ (1582)

Lesson: Genesis 3: 8-14
The Fall

Read by Maya Harrison
Principal Keeper,
Temple Newsam House

Carol: It came upon the midnight clear

It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold:
‘Peace on the earth, goodwill to men,
From heav’n’s all-gracious King!’
The world in solemn stillness lay
To hear the angels sing.

Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel-strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not
The love-song which they bring:
O hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the angels sing!

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet-bards foretold,
When, with the ever-circling years
Comes round the age of gold;
When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendours fling,
And the whole world give back the song
Which now the angels sing.

Lesson: Isaiah 9: 2, 6, 7
The prophesy of the Messiah’s birth

Read by Nicola Stoner
Specialist Community Cardiac Nurse

Choir: In the bleak mid-winter

In 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, Heav’n cannot hold him,
Nor earth sustain;
Heav’n 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.

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.

Words: Christina Rossetti (1830-1894)
Music: Gustav Holst (1874-1934)

Lesson: Luke 1: 26-38
The Annunciation to Mary

Read by Debra Couper
Deputy Leader,
Leeds City Council

Choir: The angel Gabriel

The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
His wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame;
‘All hail,’ said he, ‘thou lowly maiden Mary,
Most highly favoured lady, Gloria!

‘For known a blessèd Mother thou shalt be,
All generations laud and honour thee,
Thy Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
Most highly favoured lady, Gloria!

Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head,
‘To me be as it pleaseth God,’ she said,
‘My soul shall laud and magnify his holy name.’
Most highly favoured lady, Gloria!

Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ, was born
In Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn,
And Christian folk throughout the world will ever say:
Most highly favoured lady, Gloria!’

Words: Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924)
Music: Basque melody arr. Edgar Pettman (1866-1943)

Carol: The holly and the ivy

The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown.