Carols on the grass 2025

1 Once in royal David’s city,

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.

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 for 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 heaven 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.

Reading : Caesar Augustus

2 O little town of Bethlehem,

O little town of Bethlehem,

How still we see thee lie!

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting Light;

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee to-night.

. O morning stars, together

Proclaim the holy birth!

And praises sing to God the King,

And peace to men on earth.

For Christ is born of Mary

And gathered all above,

While mortals sleep the Angels keep

Their watch of wondering love.

How silently, how silently,

The wondrous gift is given;

So God imparts to human hearts

The blessings of His Heaven.

No ear may hear His coming,

But in this world of sin,

Where meek souls will receive Him still,

The dear Christ enters in.

. O holy Child of Bethlehem,

Descend to us, we pray!

Cast out our sin and enter in,

Be born in us to-day.

We hear the Christmas angels,

The great glad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us,

Our Lord Emmanuel!

Reading: Shepherds in the Fields

3 See him lying on a bed of straw

See him lying on a bed of straw:

a draughty stable with an open door;

Mary cradling the babe she bore

the Prince of Glory is his name.

O now carry me to Bethlehem

to see the Lord of love again:

just as poor as was the stable then,

the Prince of Glory when he came.

2 Star of silver, sweep across the skies,

show where Jesus in the manger lies;

shepherds, swiftly from your stupor rise

to see the saviour of the world!

O now carry me to Bethlehem

to see the Lord of love again:

just as poor as was the stable then,

the Prince of Glory when he came.

3 Angels, sing again the song you sang,

sing the glory of God's gracious plan;

Sing that Bethl'em's little baby can

be the saviour of us all.

O now carry me to Bethlehem

to see the Lord of love again:

just as poor as was the stable then,

the Prince of Glory when he came.

4 Mine are riches, from your poverty,

from your innocence, eternity;

mine, forgiveness by your death for me,

child of sorrow for my joy.

O now carry me to Bethlehem

to see the Lord of love again:

just as poor as was the stable then,

the Prince of Glory when he came.

It was on a starry night

When the hills were bright

Earth lay sleeping, sleeping calm and still

Then in a cattle shed, in a manger bed

A boy was born, King of all the world

Chorus And all the angels sang for Him

The bells of heaven rang for Him