NEW COLLEGE CHAPEL

A Service of
Readings and Music
for the Season of Christmas

SUNDAY 6 DECEMBER, 2015

3.00 p.m.
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ORDER OF SERVICE WEBCAST VERSION

The congregation remains seated as the choir and clergy process from the
vestry into the antechapel.
The choir sings:
Verbum caro factum est et habitavit in nobis;
cuius gloriam vidimus quasi unigeniti a Patre,
plenum gratiae et veritatis.
The word was made flesh and dwelt among us:
and we beheld his glory as of the only Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
John 1: 14
Responsory at Matins of Christmas Day
All stand for the introduction and opening prayers.

Chaplain Since Christ the Light of the World has come to dispel
the darkness of our hearts and lives: grace be with you,
and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ.
All
And with your spirit.
Chaplain Beloved in Christ, be it this Christmastide 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 fellowship within the church he came to
build, and especially in this city and diocese of Oxford,
and in this University and College.
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
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light, that multitude which no one 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:
Chaplain Our Father,
All
which art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done,
in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive them that 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.
Chaplain May the almighty God bless us with his grace:
Christ give us the joys of everlasting life,
and unto the fellowship of the citizens above
may the King of angels bring us all.
All
Amen.
All sit.

CAROL

Francis Pott (b. 1957)

O my deare hert, young Jesu sweit
Prepare thy creddil in my spreit,
And I sall rock thee to my hert,
And never mair from thee depart.
But I sall praise thee evermoir
With sanges sweit unto thy gloir;
The knees of my hert sall I bow
And sing that richt Balulalow!
James, John and Robert Wedderburn
16th century

All stand to sing the hymn, as the choir and clergy process into the chapel.
Choir

Once in royal Davids 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.

All

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 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 Gods right hand on high;
Where like stars his children crowned,
All in white shall wait around.
All sit.
FIRST READING

read by the Warden

The Shepherd King

Micah 5: 2-4

MOTET

Anton Bruckner (1824-96)

Virga Jesse floruit:
Virgo Deum et hominem genuit:
pacem Deus reddidit
in se reconcilians ima summis.
Alleluja.
The rod of Jesse has blossomed:
a Virgin has brought forth God and man.
God has restored peace,
reconciling in himself
the lowest with the highest.
Alleluia at the Feast of the Annunciation
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SECOND READING

read by the Precentor

A Child has been Born for Us

CAROL

Isaiah 9: 2-3, 6-7

Michael Praetorius (c.1571-1621)

In dulci jubilo,
Nun singet und seid froh!
Unsers Herzens Wonne
Leit in praesepio,
Und leuchtet als die Sonne
Matris in gremio,
Alpha es et O!

In quiet joy
Now sing and be joyful!
Our hearts delight
lies in a manger;
And shines like the sun
in the mothers lap.
Alpha and Omega.

Heinrich Seuse, early 14th century

CAROL

John Gardner (1926-2007)

Tomorrow shall be my dancing day;
I would my true love did so chance
To see the legend of my play,
To call my true love to my dance.
Sing O my love, O my love, my love, my love,
This have I done for my true love.
Then was I born of a virgin pure,
Of her I took fleshly substance,
Thus was I knit to mans nature
To call my true love to my dance.
In a manger laid, and wrappd I was,
So very poor, this was my chance,
Betwixt an ox and a silly poor ass,
To call my true love to my dance.
Then afterwards baptized I was;
The Holy Ghost on me did glance,
My Fathers voice heard I from above,
To call my true love to my dance.
Traditional Cornish Carol
collected by William Sandys, 1833

THIRD READING

read by a chorister parent

The Lords Servant

Isaiah 42: 1-9

CAROL

William Mathias (1934-92)

A babe is born all of a may
To bring salvation unto us.
To him we sing both night and day:
Veni creator Spiritus.

Come, creator Spirit.

At Bethlehem, that blessd place,

The Child of bliss now born he was;
And him to serve God give us grace:
O lux beata Trinitas.
O light of the blessed Trinity.
There came three kings out of the East,
To worship the King that is so free,
With gold and myrrh and frankincense:
A solis ortus cardine.
From the rising of the sun.
The angels came down with one cry,
A fair song that night sung they
In worship of that child:
Gloria tibi, Domine. Noel!

Glory to you, Lord.

15th century
All stand to sing the hymn.

O come, all ye faithful,

Joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the King of Angels:
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!
God of God,
Light of Light,
Lo! he abhors not the Virgins womb;
Very God,
Begotten, not created:
O come, let us adore him:
See how the Shepherds,
Summoned to his cradle,
Leaving their flocks, draw nigh with lowly fear;
We too will thither
Bend our joyful footsteps:
O come, let us adore him:
Sing, choirs of Angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above;
Glory to God
In the Highest:
O come, let us adore him:
All sit.
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FOURTH READING

read by a chorister

The Birth of Jesus

Luke 2: 1-7

CAROL

Peter Warlock (1894-1930)

When he is King we will give him the Kings gifts,
Myrrh for its sweetness, and gold for a crown,
Beautiful robes, said the young girl to Joseph,
Fair with her firstborn on Bethlehem Down.
Bethlehem Down is full of the starlight,
Winds for the spices, and stars for the gold,
Mary for sleep, and for lullaby music
Songs of a shepherd by Bethlehem fold.
When he is King, they will clothe him in gravesheets,
Myrrh for embalming, and wood for a crown,
He that lies now in the white arms of Mary
Sleeping so lightly on Bethlehem Down.
Here he has peace and a short while for dreaming,
Close huddled oxen to keep him from cold,
Mary for love, and for lullaby music
Songs of a shepherd by Bethlehem fold.
Bruce Blunt (1899-1957)

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FIFTH READING

read by a graduate student

The Shepherds and the Angels

MOTET

Luke 2: 8-20

Toms Luis de Victoria (1548-1611)

O magnum mysterium et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia
viderunt Dominum natum, jacentem in praesepio! O beata
Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum Jesum
Christum. Alleluia!
O great mystery, and wondrous sacrament,
that animals should see the new-born Lord, lying in
their manger! Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was
worthy to bear the Lord Jesus Christ. Alleluia!
Responsory at Matins on Christmas Day

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CAROL

Richard Rodney Bennett (1936-2012)

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, heaven cannot hold him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven 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.
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.
Christina Rossetti (1830-94)

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SIXTH READING

read by a member of the school staff

The Visit of the Wise Men

CAROL

Matthew 2: 1-12
Charles Ives (1874-1954)

Little star of Bethlehem!

Do we see thee now?
Do we see thee shining
Oer the tall trees?
Little Child of Bethlehem!
Do we hear thee in our hearts?
Hear the angels singing:
Peace on earth, good will to men!
Nol!
Oer the cradle of a King,
Hear the angels sing:
In excelsis Gloria!
From his Fathers home on high,
Lo! for us he came to die;
Hear the angels sing:
Venite adoremus Dominum!
Harmony Twitchell Ives (1876-1969)

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CAROL

Matthew Martin (b. 1976)

Nowell sing we, both all and some
Now Rex pacificus is come
Ex ortum est in love and lysse,
Now Christ his grace he gan us gysse,
And with his body bought us bliss,
Both all and some.
De fructu ventris of Mary bright,
Both God and man in her alight,
Out of disease he did us dight,
Both all and some.

The King of Peace

It came about; relief
began; reward

fruit of the womb

distress; put

Puer natus to us was sent

To bliss us bought, fro bale us blent,
And else to woe we had y-went,
Both all and some.

a baby was born

misery; turned

Lux fulgebit with love and light

In Mary mild his pennon pight
In her took kind with many might.
Both all and some.

a light will shine

placed

Gloria tibi ay and bliss,

God unto his grace he us wysse,
The rent of heaven that we not miss
Both all and some.

glory to you
reward

15th century
All stand to sing the hymn.

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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 tonight.
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 today.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell:
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel.
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All remain standing.

SEVENTH READING

read by the Dean of Divinity

The Word became Flesh

John 1: 1-14

All sit.
MOTET

John Sheppard (c.1515-1558)

Verbum caro factum est et habitavit in nobis; cuius gloriam
vidimus quasi unigeniti a Patre, plenum gratiae et veritatis.
In principio erat verbum et verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus
erat verbum. Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto.
The word was made flesh and dwelt among us: and we
beheld his glory as of the only Son of the Father, full of
grace and truth.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was with
God, and the word was God.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy
Spirit.
John 1: 14, 1
Responsory at Matins of Christmas Day

All stand.

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Chaplain Almighty and everliving God, you have given us a new

revelation of your love in the coming of your son, Jesus
Christ, to be born of the Virgin Mary. Grant that as he
shared our mortality, so we may share his eternity in the
glory of your kingdom; where he lives and reigns for
ever and ever.
All
Amen.
Chaplain Christ, who by his incarnation gathered into one things
earthly and heavenly, fill you with peace and goodwill
and make you partakers of the divine nature;
and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit, be upon you and remain with you
always.
All
Amen.
Chaplain As we go forth in peace may our lives reveal Gods
Word made flesh.
All
Thanks be to God.
All sing the hymn.
Of the Fathers 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.

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O how blest that wondrous birthday,

When the maid the curse retrieved,
Brought to birth mankinds salvation,
By the holy ghost conceived;
And the Babe, the worlds Redeemer,
In her loving arms received,
Evermore and evermore.
This is he, whom seer and sibyl
Sang in ages long gone by;
This is he of old reveald
In the page of prophecy;
Lo! He comes, the promised Saviour;
Let the world his praises cry!
Evermore and evermore.
Sing, ye heights of heaven, his praises;
Angels and Archangels, sing!
Wheresoeer ye be, ye faithful,
Let your joyous anthems ring;
Every tongue his name confessing,
Countless voices answering,
Evermore and evermore.
The congregation remains standing as the clergy and choir leave the
chapel.
ORGAN MUSIC AFTER THE SERVICE
In dulci jubilo, BWV 729

J. S. Bach (1685-1750)

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There will be a collection at the door for

the work of the following charities:
Project Rousseau
www.projectrousseau.org
M-LISADA
www.Mlisada.org
Doctors of the World
www.doctorsoftheworld.org.uk
Gabriels Dream
www.justgiving.com/paula-masih-gill1
Oxford Homeless Pathways
www.oxhop.org.uk

Cover illustration: The Nativity (marble)

Richard Westmacott (1775-1856)
Courtesy of the Warden and Scholars of New College, Oxford
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