1 The snow lay on the ground, the stars shone bright,
When Christ the Lord was born on Christmas night.
Venite, adoremus Dominum,
Venite, adoremus Dominum.
Refrain:
Venite, adoremus Dominum,
Venite, adoremus Dominum.
2 'Twas Mary, Virgin pure of holy Anne,
That brought into this world the God made man.
She laid him in a stall at Bethlehem;
The ass and oxen shared the roof with them. [Refrain]
3 Saint Joseph, too was near to tend the child,
To guard him, and protect his mother mild:
The angels hover'd round, and sang this song:
Venite, adoremus Dominum. [Refrain]
4 And thus that manger poor became a throne;
For he whom Mary bore was God the Son.
O come, then, let us join the heav'nly host,
To praise the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. [Refrain]
Source: Breaking Bread (Vol. 39) #101
First Line: | The snow lay on the ground, The stars shone bright |
Title: | The Snow Lay On the Ground |
Meter: | 10.10.10.10 with refrain |
Source: | Unknown source, 19th cent.; Anglo-Irish carol |
Language: | English |
Refrain First Line: | Venite adoremus Dominum |
Copyright: | Public Domain |
The snow lay on the ground. [Christmas.] This appears to be a West of England traditional carol, and is given as such in R. R. Chope's Carols, 1875, No. 44, where it begins "The snow lay deep upon the ground." In the Crown of Jesus, 1862, No. 146, it begins “The snow lay on the ground" and is marked, with regard to the tune, as "Christmas Carol, sung in Rome by the Pifferari from the Abruzzi Mountains." The text of 1862 is in the Arundel Hymnal, 1902, and many others. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)