Why Christmas Carols? (Silent Night)

Allow me to be completely honest.  I don’t like Christmas.  I don’t mean that I dislike the giving and receiving of presents, the “tinsulated” driveways and eaves, the smell of hot cider and honey-glazed ham in the oven.  I hate the music.  Now before you finish dialing the church office hear me out….  I mean, come on, who even knows what a “Currier and Ives” painting looks like anymore.  Jingle Bells was originally a Thanksgiving hymn.  And, let’s face it; if you’re dreaming of a white Christmas – you either need to get help or change zip codes.

So what we’re going to do this year is look at one of these over-sung and unduly-popularized Christmas hymns each week, hopefully discovering in our quest the original intention of each author, poet, composer and musician who first put pen to paper, bow to string, and story to song.

This week we begin with Silent Night.

This favorite hymn has an interesting history – unfortunately many of the stories concerning its inception may be folklore. That said, this particular story is my favorite:

One cold and snowy Christmas Eve in 1818, Josef Mohr, the curate of a small parish church in Oberndorf, Austria, found himself in the middle of a crisis. His church, St. Nicholas, was bedecked in Christmas regalia, and the small town was ready to celebrate the nativity of Jesus Christ – but the organ, due to mischievous mice, was inoperable. Troubled by the loss of his principal vehicle for worship, he walked to a nearby town to request the aid of his friend and local schoolteacher, Franz Gruber.

Together, these two friends penned the words and music to one of Christmas’ most beloved carols, Silent Night, Holy Night. With Gruber on guitar and Mohr singing the gentle, lullaby-like melody, the little church in a quiet village in Austria worshiped together, welcoming the savior of mankind into the world once again.

The new hymn was promptly forgotten – but an organ repairman, sent to fix the problem caused by the mice, found the sheet music for the hymn and brought it with him out of the small town and into the rest of the world.

Other stories about this hymn have been verified:

Christmas Eve, 1914, Ypres, Belgium. British and German troops unofficially declared a truce during the night and throughout Christmas day. It was a time when soldiers on both sides exchanged gifts with one another. It also allowed troops to bury their dead left in no man’s land. Some reports state that the truce began as German troops sang Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht and the British replied by singing English carols.

On Christmas Eve 1942, US soldiers on Guadalcanal in the South Pacific sang Silent Night, Holy Night in a Christmas Eve Service, even as the Japanese bombed their positions. Miraculously, no one in the church was injured throughout the raid.

Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and Child.
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight;
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born! 

Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love’s pure light;
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth. 

Silent night, holy night
Wondrous star, lend thy light;
With the angels let us sing,
Alleluia to our King;
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born!

 

~ by sholander on December 5, 2007.