Lyrics:

1. Oh, come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant!
Oh, come ye, oh come ye to Bethlehem.
Come and behold him,
Born the King of angels;

(Chorus)
Oh, come, let us adore him;
Oh, come, let us adore him;
Oh, come, let us adore him,
Christ, the Lord.

2. Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation;
Sing, all ye citizens of heav’n above!
Glory to God,
Glory in the highest;

3. Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
Born this happy morning;
Jesus, to thee be all glory giv’n.
Son of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing;

Text: Attr. to John F. Wade, ca. 1711-1786; trans. by Frederick Oakeley, 1802-1880
Music: Attr. to John F. Wade

-History: (Source: Wikipedia)

“Adeste Fideles” is a hymn tune attributed to English hymnist John Francis Wade (although the exact authorship is unknown and disputed). The text itself has unclear beginnings, and may have been written in the 13th century by John of Reading, though it has been concluded that Wade was probably the author.^[1]

The original four verses of the hymn were extended to a total of eight, and these have been translated into many languages many times, though the English “O Come All Ye Faithful” translation by the English Roman Catholic priest Frederick Oakeley^[2] is particularly widespread.

Before the emergence of John Francis Wade as the probable composer, the tune had been purported to be written by several musicians, from John Reading and his son to Handel and even Gluck, including the Portuguese composer Marcos Portugal. There are several similar musical themes written around that time, though it can be hard to determine whether these were written in imitation of the hymn, the hymn was based on them, or they are totally unconnected.

The earliest existing manuscript shows both words and tune. John Francis Wade included it in his own publication of Cantus Diversi (1751). It was published again in the 1760 edition of Evening Offices of the Church. It also appeared in Samuel Webbe‘sAn Essay on the Church Plain Chant (1782).

The original text has been from time to time attributed to various groups and individuals, including St. Bonaventure in the 13th century or King John IV of Portugal in the 17th, though it was more commonly believed that the text was written by an order of monks, the Cistercian, German, Portuguese and Spanish orders have, at various times been given credit.

The original text consisted of four Latin verses, and it was with these that the hymn was originally published. The Abbé Étienne Jean François Borderies wrote an additional three verses in the 18th century; these are normally printed as the third to fifth of seven verses, while another, anonymous, additional Latin verse is rarely printed. The text has been translated innumerable times, but the most used version today is the English “O Come, All Ye Faithful”. This is a combination of one of Frederick Oakeley‘s translations of the original four verses and William Thomas Brooke‘s of the three additional ones, which was first published in Murray’s Hymnal in 1852.

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