“Wise Men presenting gifts to the Madonna and Child”
by R. Anbell, 1895
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE
The inn was old,
And dark and gray;
A sign was up,
“No Room Today.”
A merchant prince
Was guest within,
A Levite old,
The keeper’s kin.
Unnoticed by
The guests inside,
Two strangers came,
And turned aside.
The inn must bear
The ages’ doom;
Because for Christ
It had no room.
(The angels sing
The Savior’s birth,
The dawn of joy
To men on earth.
The shepherds hear
The angels’ lay,
And haste to give
To Christ their praise.
But what of us
Who have more light?
We cannot plead
The dark of night.
In Christmas tale
Each plays a part: –
Immanuel knocks
At every heart.
Too oft he finds
The sign “No Room,”
And leaves that one
To face his doom.
When days with work
And play are filled;
Our hearts, apart
From God, are chilled.
But in the East
Still shines His Star;
And Wise Men see,
And follow far.
To Bethlehem
They come and bring,
Their hearts and gifts
To Christ their King.
Image above retrieved from:
http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgkeysearchdetail.cfm?trg=1&strucID=704311&imageID=818755&word=christ%20child&s=1¬word=&d=&c=&f=&k=0&lWord=&lField=&sScope=&sLevel=&sLabel=&sort=&total=43&num=20&imgs=20&pNum=&pos=35
Source:
Image Title: [Wise men presenting gifts to the Madonna and Child.] Creator: Anbell, R. — Artist. Published Date: 1895. Specific Material Type: Prints. Item Physical Description: 1 print : b&w ; 37 x 27 cm. (14 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.) Notes: Written on border: “DB Updike, Boston, 1895.” Source: Mid-Manhattan Picture Collection / Design — border. Source Description: 4 folders (136 pictures). Location: Mid-Manhattan Library / Picture Collection. Catalog Call Number: PC DESI-Bor. Digital ID: 818755. Record ID: 704311. Digital Item Published: 10-27-2005; updated 3-25-2011
Reblogged this on Writings and Letters of Darius Mitteer Ratcliff.
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Love it, Betty Jo!
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