~
Stand in silence, O thou man:
Be mute before the mystery.
Thy mouth betrays thine ignorance;
Let angels be a tongue for thee.
Stand in silence, O thou man:
Let holy terror be thy praise,
For Wisdom’s Word is spoken here;
So learn the number of thy days.
Kneel in silence, O thou man,
And know the world is ending here.
The clamor of the years’ lament
Is hushed when infant God appears.
Kneel in silence, O thou man,
And feel the trembling of the earth.
For nature’s labor nears its end:
Hail promised Seed! Hail holy Birth!
Bow in silence, O thou man:
Hear how the prince of earth doth rage,
To see his long dominion crushed
By this, the Sovereign in the cave.
Bow in silence, O thou man,
Nor let a wanton breath be spent,
But wordless, let thy heart adore
This first, and truest, Sacrament.
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