Gaudete! Christus est natus ...!

Gaudete,
    gaudete!
Christus
    est natus
    Rejoice,
        rejoice!
    Christ
        is born
Ex Maria
    virgine,
    gaudete!
    Of Mary
        the Virgin — rejoice!

Tempus adest gratiæ
    The time of grace has come
Hoc quod optabamus,
    This that we have desired,
Carmina lætitiæ
    Verses of joy
Devote reddamus.
    Let us devoutly return.

Deus homo factus est
    God has become man,
Natura mirante,
    Nature marveling,
Mundus renovatus est
    The world has been renewed
A Christo regnante.
    By the reigning Christ.

Ezechielis porta
    The closed gate of Ezechiel
Clausa pertransitur,
    Is passed through,
Unde lux est orta
    Whence the light is born,
Salus invenitur.
    Salvation is found.

Ergo nostra contio
    Therefore let our gathering
Psallat iam in lustro;
    Now sing in brightness
Benedicat Domino:
    Let it give praise to the Lord:
Salus Regi nostro.
    Greeting to our King.

“Gaudete” (pronounced gow-DAE-tae, "rejoice" in Latin) is a sacred Christmas carol, composed sometime in the 16th century. The song was published in the Piae Cantiones, a collection of Finnish/Swedish sacred songs published in 1582. No music is given for the verses, but the standard tune comes from older liturgical books.

The text, in Latin, is a typical song of praise, probably stemming from the Middle Ages. It follows the standard pattern for the time - a uniform series of four-line stanzas, each preceded by a two-line refrain (in the early English carol this was known as the "burden"). Carols could be on any subject, but typically they were about the Virgin Mary or the Saints of Christmas.

And tonight, we rejoice, for God is with us.