Tu scendi dalle stelle

Tu scendi dalle stelle
o Re del cielo,
e vieni in una grotta
al freddo, al gelo.

O bambino mio divino
io ti vedo qui a tremar
o Dio beato;
ah quanto ti costò
l'avermi amato!

A te che sei del mondo
il Creatore,
mancaron panni e fuoco
o mio Signore!

Caro eletto pargoletto
quanto questa povertà
più m'innamora
giacché ti fece amor
povero ancora!

Tu lasci del tuo Padre
il divin seno
e vieni qui a penar
su poco fieno:

dolce amore del mio cuore,
dove amor ti trasportò?
O gesù mio,
per chi tanto patir?
Per amor mio!

Ma se fu tuo voler
il tuo patire,
perché vuoi pianger poi,
perché vagire?

Sposo mio, amato Dio, mio Gesù,
t'intendo, sì.
Ah! Mio Signore!
Tu piangi non per duol,
ma per amore.

— S. Alfonso de Liguori

 You come down from the stars
O King of heaven,
and you come to a cold,
frozen cave.

O my divine child,
I see you trembling here
O blessed God;
ah how much it cost you
to have loved me!

My Lord,
you are the Creator of the world,
yet you lacked clothes
and a warming fire.

Infant beloved and elect,
how much your poverty
enamors me the more;
since love made you
even poorer!

You leave the divine breast
of your Father
and you come here to suffer
on a little hay:

sweet love of my heart,
where has love brought you?
O my Jesus,
for whom have you suffered so?
To win my love!

But if your suffering
be your will,
why do you cry,
why do you sob?

My Jesus, my beloved God, my spouse,
I understand you, yes.
Ah! My Lord!
You weep not from suffering,
but from love.

— St. Alphonsus de Liguori*

* Ironically, this intensely Christ-centered hymn, filled with adoration, love, and a sense of intimacy with Christ, is the product of the same man who wrote The Glories of Mary, a book that (according to anti-Catholics) "proves" that Catholics have replaced affection for Christ with affection for the Virgin Mary.