Patrick Comerford
Advent began this week with Advent Sunday, and the countdown to Christmas is well under way.
At noon each day in Advent this year, I am offering one image as part of my ‘Advent Calendar’ for 2025, and one Advent or Christmas carol or hymn.
‘People, Look East’, which we sang as the Offertory hymn in Saint Mary and Saint Giles Church, Stony Stratford, last Sunday (Advent I, 30 November 2025), was written by Eleanor Farjeon (1881-1965) and was first published in The Oxford Book of Carols (1928).
Eleanor (‘Nellie’) Farjeon, a native of London, was a devout Catholic who viewed her faith as ‘a progression toward which her spiritual life moved rather than a conversion experience.’ She was friends with many leading authors of her day, including DH Lawrence and Robert Frost. She won acclaim as an author of children’s nursery rhymes and singing games, including her best-known poem ‘Morning Has Broken’, made popular by Cat Stevens.
People, look east. The time is near
Of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able,
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the guest, is on the way.
Furrows, be glad. Though earth is bare,
One more seed is planted there:
Give up your strength the seed to nourish,
That in course the flower may flourish.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the rose, is on the way.
Birds, though you long have ceased to build,
Guard the nest that must be filled.
Even the hour when wings are frozen
God for fledging time has chosen.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the bird, is on the way.
Stars, keep the watch. When night is dim
One more light the bowl shall brim,
Shining beyond the frosty weather,
Bright as sun and moon together.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the star, is on the way.
Angels, announce with shouts of mirth
Christ who brings new life to earth.
Set every peak and valley humming
With the word, the Lord is coming.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the Lord, is on the way.
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