Infant Holy, Infant Lowly

This is the third Christmas Hymn arrangement I've posted by Ruth Elaine Schram, a composer who lives in the United States. I posted a bit of her bio with "Joy to the World" atL http://www.contrebombarde.com/concerthall/music/22792

When you consider that there are theophanies in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) in which the Lord God appears as a human man (Genesis 18:1 for example), you may wonder why Jesus was born as a baby. He could have just walked in from the desert as an adult. It says something of God the Father's love for humanity that he wanted his Son to experience human life from birth, living with us, among us, rather than to skip that and come as an adult. Jesus could identify with the people he came to save!

Thus we have the wonder of "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly", God with us, still a holy God, but born and living as a lowly peasant in the backwaters of the Roman Empire.

The text is "probably attributable" to Piotrowi Skardze (1536-1612). The traditional Polish tune is from the 18th century.

The carol was first published in Polish in 1908 and translated and published by Edith M. Reed (1885-1933) in 1921. Edith was a music editor and an associate of the Royal College of Organists.

Again, this selection is from Sunday Morning Organist Vol 1: Christmas available at http://www.alfred.com/Products/Sunday-Morning-Organist-Volume-1-Solos-for-Christmas--00-33259.aspx