O little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting light.
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
– “O Little Town of Bethlehem”, LBW
Christmas is here! “Joy to the World!” ” Hark! the Herald Angels Sing!” “Oh, come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant!” “Good Christian friends, rejoice!” “Go Tell It on the Mountain!” The music of the Christmas season resonates with joy and celebration. We find ourselves caught up in the exciting proclamation of the birth of Messiah, the Promised One, God’s own Son, who will bring peace to the troubled world and to whom the very universe bows down in adoration and worship.
Big events, and this is certainly as big as it gets, call for cheering, singing, pageantry, bells ringing and every expression of happiness we can create. Our tradition of music that reflects the observances of the church year gives us an opportunity to give voice to such a celebratory time.
But take a second or third look in one of our worship books, and you’ll see something more. You’ll find hymns that are quiet, thoughtful, and filled with wonder. “What Child Is This”, “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” “Silent Night, Holy Night!”, “Away in a Manger,” are probably the most familiar, but many others invite us to reflect on the meaning of God’s gift of his Son to a sinful and needy human race. Martin Luther wrote the words to “From Heaven Above”, which is a hymn, but also a beautiful, poetic reading. Luther’s eloquent expression of gratitude and praise to God is as meaningful today as when it was written 500 years ago. It’s a devotion in itself.
So we’ll sing praises, rejoice, and then quietly light candles in a darkened space, and prayerfully sing that in our hearts all will be calm, and all will be bright, for Christ, the Savior, is born. I love the message in an old hymn, “In the Bleak Midwinter” as a child asks what to bring the Christ child, as he is so poor. Then he says, “Yet what I can, I give him–give my heart.” There is our response to this greatest gift of all time.
Wishing a blessed Christmas to all,
Mary Rogers