I had never heard the song Vic posted, so I did some googling around and found this…I had never heard this one either, but I knew of Lewis Capaldi from watching Graham Norton…oddly enough, I didn’t realize he was a singer/song writer, I thought he was a comedian…
This is my standard Christmas post, but this year I thought I would do something different. This year I thought I might pull a bernice, and post it on every single sight I am on, so that all my friends are forced to view it multiple times…you know, like wordle and twitter/X…
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger’. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men’.
I went to a private school as a child. It was small…the year I graduated there were only 54 students in the entire school…2 in my graduating class…myself, and Tommy Hicks. The 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grades were all in the same classroom. It was the homeroom of Mrs. Hopewell, our math teacher (we always called her the H-Bomb). She was a massive woman…not fat, mind you, but, tall…towering…big boned…almost masculine…and, good grief, was she intimidating! I don’t think there was a person in school who wasn’t terrified of her, and that included the teachers. I can’t think back on those years without smiling every time I think about her…she loved Christmas….and she loved the song, Silent Night. She would have us sing it at the end of the school day during the holidays. We would sing the first stanza, and then we would hum the next. She openly wept. It always amazed me that this giant, ‘hard’, feared woman would become mush at the sound of all those innocent voices…the gentle humming of that wonderful song. It, actually, brings a tear to my eye as I think about it now…
Silent Night (Stille Nacht)
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 Saviour is born Christ, the Saviour 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
The origin of the Christmas carol we know as Silent Night was a poem that was written in 1816 by the Austrian priest, Joseph Mohr.
Throughout the world, “Silent Night”, which has been translated into more than 200 languages, is an anchor for Christmas celebrations. Its lullaby-like melody and simple message of heavenly peace can be heard from small town street corners in mid-America to magnificent cathedrals in Europe and from outdoor candlelight concerts in Australia to palm thatched huts in northern Peru.
The song was sung simultaneously in English and German by troops during the Christmas truce of 1914, as it was one of the few carols that soldiers on both sides of the front line knew. The event is depicted in the 1997 Garth Brooks song “Belleau Wood”.
“Belleau Wood”
Oh, the snowflakes fell in silence Over Belleau Wood that night For a Christmas truce had been declared By both sides of the fight
As we lay there in our trenches The silence broke in two By a German soldier singing A song that we all knew
Though I did not know the language The song was “Silent Night”
Then I heard my buddy whisper, “All is calm and all is bright”
Then the fear and doubt surrounded me ‘Cause I’d die if I was wrong But I stood up in my trench And I began to sing along
Then across the frozen battlefield Another’s voice joined in Until one by one each man became A singer of the hymn
Then I thought that I was dreaming For right there in my sight Stood the German soldier ‘Neath the falling flakes of white
And he raised his hand and smiled at me As if he seemed to say Here’s hoping we both live To see us find a better way
Then the devil’s clock struck midnight And the skies lit up again And the battlefield where heaven stood Was blown to hell again
But for just one fleeting moment The answer seemed so clear Heaven’s not beyond the clouds It’s just beyond the fear
No, heaven’s not beyond the clouds It’s for us to find it here
Silent Night is the most famous Christmas carol of all time, and it happens to be my all time favorite.
Please remember to pray for our troops, and their loved ones, this Holiday season, and throughout the year…May they come home soon.