Words: Translation from the Neopolitan
Translator Unknown
Music: W. F. Taylor
MIDI / Noteworthy Composer / PDF
Source: Rev. Charles Lewis Hutchins, Carols Old and Carols New (Boston: Parish Choir, 1916), Carol 678
1. When Christ was born in Bethlehem,
'Twas night, but seemed the noon of day:
The star whose light
Was pure and bright,
Was pure and bright,
Shone with unwav'ring rays;
But one bright star,
One glorious star
Guided the Eastern Magi from afar.
2. Then peace was spread throughout the land;
The lion fed beside the lamb;
And with the kid,
To pastures led,
To pastures led,
The spotted leopard fed
In peace, in peace,
The calf and bear,
The wolf and lamb reposed together there.
3. As shepherds watched their flocks by night,
An angel brighter than the sun
Appeared in air,
And gently said,
And gently said,
"Fear not, be not afraid,
Behold, behold
Beneath your eyes,
Earth has become a smiling Paradise."
Sheet Music from Charles L. Hutchins
This carol should not be confused with the one of the same name written by Laurence Housman, 1906: When Christ Was Born In Bethlehem.
Likewise, this carol should not be confused with the one of the same name based on the poem "A Christmas Carol" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (itself based on a poem from the Naples region of Italy, "Bourguignon De Gui Barozai") with music by Ebenezer Beesley (1840-1906). I don't have the carol, but I do have the poem: "A Christmas Carol" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
