Saint Ambrose - Veni Redemptor Gentium

Kudos and hat tip to Monsignor Charles Pope (click here for his commentary)for this gem of an Advent carol. Saint Ambrose's Veni Redemptor Gentium:

• Come, thou Redeemer of the earth,
• Come testify thy virgin birth:
• All lands admire, all times applaud:
• Such is the birth that fits our God.
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• Forth from his chamber goeth he,
• That royal home of purity,
• A giant in twofold substance one,
• Rejoicing now his course to run.
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• The Virgin’s womb that glory gained,
• Its virgin honor is still unstained.
• The banners there of virtue glow;
• God in his temple dwells below.
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• From God the Father he proceeds,
• To God the Father back he speeds;
• Runs out his course to death and hell,
• Returns on God’s high throne to dwell.
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• O Equal to thy Father, thou!
• Gird on thy fleshly mantle now;
• The weakness of our mortal state
• With deathless might invigorate.
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• Thy cradle here shall glitter bright,
• And darkness breathe a newer light,
• Where endless faith shall shine serene,
• And twilight never intervene.
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• All laud, eternal Son, to thee
• Whose advent sets thy people free,
• Whom with the Father we adore,
• And Holy Ghost, for evermore.