Today the Virgin

Today the Virgin comes to the cave
To give birth to the Word eternal:
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Mary, my wife, O Mary my wife!
What do I see?
I took you blameless before the Lord
From the priests of the Temple.
What do I see?
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Joseph the Bridegroom, O Joseph the Bridegroom!
Do not fear.
God in His mercy has come down to earth,
He takes flesh in my womb
For all the world to see.
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Mary my Bride, O Mary my Bride!
What do I see?
You, a virgin giving birth,
Strange mystery!
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Joseph the Bridegroom, O Joseph the Bridegroom!
Do not fear.
God in His mercy has come down to earth,
He takes flesh in my womb
For all the world to see.
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Warned by the Angel we believe
That Mary gives birth inexplicable
To the infant, Christ our God.
    Rejoice, O World!
    With the Angels and the Shepherds
    Give glory to the Child!
    Alleluia!

Mother Thekla (1920-)
Abbess, Orthodox Monastery, North Yorkshire

The Cathedral Choral Society performed a setting of "Today the Virgin" at our Joy of Christmas concert in 2000. (You can hear a brief snippet of it as performed by Chanticleer at amazon.com.) I assumed at the time it was an ancient text, but apparently it was written in the late 1980s. I guess it stands to reason that a member of a Greek Orthodox religious order could mimic an ancient style better than most.