A Newborn bloom

translated from the poem Es ist ein ros' entsprungen

Translation by kent reeder | music by Drew sonnenberg | Piano by steven springborn

Lyrics
A tender rose has quietly sprung
from a fragile but living vine,
as we had heard, the ancients had sung,
of the child of Jesse's line,
to bear a bloom so bright
despite the winter chill
and the darkness of the night.

The gentle rose which catches my eye
is the one that had been foretold.
Isaiah said that Mary the virgin
would bear him, though not alone;
at God's immortal word
the rose produced a bloom
who was made salvation sure.

This newborn bloom, too small to be more
than a fragrance that's sweet but slight,
is driving out the shadows by filling
the world with a brilliant light.
And we, though we are flawed,
are saved from death and sin
by true human and true God.