Christina Rossetti, “In the Bleak Midwinter” [Poetry for Christmas]

I’ve enjoyed posting poetry series themed around the Christian year recently (see “Poetry for Lent,” “Poetry for Easter,“ and “Poetry for Ordinary Time“). As a follow-up to the “Poetry for Advent” series, I am continuing that theme with a series called “Poetry for Christmas.” The season of Christmas, or Christmastide, runs after Advent, beginning with Christmas Day (December 25) through Epiphany Eve (January 5), giving us the 12 days of Christmas that we might have heard of. As we might expect, Christmastide focuses our celebrations around the nativity and early life of Jesus.

I continue this brief series of Christmas poetry with a poem by Christina Rossetti, “In the Bleak Midwinter,” which has been set to music in various settings. Christina Rossetti (1830-1788) was the author of numerous books of poetry and became one of the most revered poets of the Victorian era.

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In the bleak midwinter, 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 midwinter, long ago.

Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.

Enough for Him, whom cherubim, worship night and day,
Breastful of milk, and a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels fall before,
The ox and ass and camel which adore.

Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.

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.

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Other poems in this series:

Charles Wesley, “For Christmas morning: Hark! the herald Angels sing”