Catholic Hymns (1860)/Litany of the Birth of Jesus
30. Litany of the Birth of Jesus.
By the word to Mary giv'n,
By Thy first descent from heav'n,
By Thine infant form so fair,
Tumbling in the midnight air—
Chorus.
Babe of Bethlehem, hear our cry!
Thou wert helpless once as we;
Hear the loving Litany
We, Thy children, sing to Thee.
By Thy poor and lowly lot,
By the manger and the grot,
By Thy little feet and hands,
Folded fast in swaddling bands,
Babe of Bethlehem, &c.
By the worship shepherds paid,
By the gifts that sages made,
Gold and myrrh and incense sweet,
Laid in homage at Thy feet,—
Babe of Bethlehem, &c.
By St. Joseph's thoughts amaz'd,
When he first upon Thee gaz'd,
And his Lord and Maker saw
Laid upon a bed of straw,—
Babe of Bethlehem, &c.
And oh, more than all the rest,
By the joy of Mary's breast
When she, kneeling, first ador'd
Thee, her child and yet her Lord,—
Babe of Bethlehem, &c.