"Christmas Once is Christmas Still" by Phillips Brooks

"Christmas Once is Christmas Still"

by Phillips Brooks

The silent skies are full of speech,
For who hath ears to hear;
The winds are whispering each to each,
The moon is calling to the beach,
And stars their sacred mission teach
Of Faith, and Love, and Fear.


But once the sky its silence broke,
And song o'erflowed the earth,
The midnight air with glory shook,
And angels mortal language spoke,
When God our human nature took
In Christ the Saviour's birth.

And Christmas once is Christmas still;
The gates through which He came,
And forests wild and murmuring rill,
And fruitful field and breezy hill,
And all that else the wide world fill
Are vocal with His name.


Shall we not listen while they sing
This latest Christmas morn,
And music hear in everything,
And faithful lives in tribute bring
To the great song which greets the King
Who comes when Christ is born.

~~Phillips Brooks~~

(He is better known for his carol, "O Little Town of Bethelehem." I have assigned this to my middle school English class in recent years.)