The Twelve Days of Christmas

So, here we are in the 12 days of Christmas. I can't say I've been as bold as my fellow blogger in wishing others "Merry Christmas" although I was pleasantly surprised to hear carols (both sacred and secular) still playing in the grocery store yesterday. If you are like me, the minute you hear the phrase "the 12 days of Christmas" you think of the song we sometimes sing listing all the gifts from "my true love". The song was not the beginning of the 12 days. At the Council of Tours (a meeting of leaders of the Christian church in 567) these days were proclaimed to be a sacred and festive season. Basically, they are the days between Christmas and Epiphany although there seems to be more than one way to count them. Sometimes the 12 days are considered to be December 26th to January 6th (Epiphany). Sometimes the counting begins with the evening of December 25th which then makes January 5th "Twelfth Night" and the 6th "Twelfth Day". Until the 1800's, in England anyway, the festivities of Twelfth night took precedence over those of December 25th. We can credit the Victorians with bringing the focus back to Christmas.
(Information gleaned from various internet sites and from Gerry Bowler's The World Encyclopedia of Christmas.)

Merry Christmas!

Rejoice! Christ, the Saviour, is born!

Last Sunday evening, I attended the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols service at St. Andrew's Woodhaven. (I try, every year, to attend one Advent/Christmas service where I don't have to play and can sit, sing, listen and worship.) As I parked the car and walked briskly through the crisp - no, make that frigid - December air, I was greeted by the bidding bell - and sure enough, as I entered the church there was a gentleman rhythmically pulling the rope!

One carol I nearly always think of on Christmas is "I heard the bells on Christmas day"although I rarely have an opportunity to sing it with others. I wrote the following for the bulletin on December 21st:
There is nothing quite like the stirring sound of church bells ringing out loud and clear to send shivers up and down my spine! I have had a couple opportunities to hear "the pealing of the bells" at St. Luke's Anglican down on Nassau St. N. and I find it a very moving experience. Bells have been used through the centuries to announce events both happy and sad. They bring communities together to worship (church bells) and to serve each other (fire bells). Considering how prominent bells are at this time of year I was surprised to find only two Advent/Christmas carols that mention bells: Long ago, prophets knew and I heard the bells on Christmas day. If you think of another one, please let me know!


I must have been tired when I wrote the above because I've easily thought of 2 more since: Ding-dong! Merrily on high and Ring, little bells. I'd still like to know what others you can think of.

Advent: Preparing for Christmas (4)

You may find it strange to learn that, even though I'm a musician, I don't have music playing in my house all the time. Oh, there are times when the house is full of music because my family members play, and because I have students coming in 3 days a week. I have noticed though, especially over the last few years, that the busier I am with my own music-making, or that of my choir and congregation, the less I listen to the music of others! I guess there just isn't room in my head for all the music I'd like to enjoy at this time of year, as well as all the music I'm trying to prepare or help others prepare. And let's not forget, we are still in Advent, that season of waiting for our Messiah, of preparing for His coming. If you are like me, there are still many preparations to be made...

Last year, about this time, I headed off to the grocery store one morning. I was feeling overwhelmed with all that yet needed to be done, (kind of like today!) and getting the groceries seemed to be just one more thing on the lengthy 'to-do' list. It was one of the rare occasions when I did have the radio on in the car and as I pulled in to the parking lot and parked the car, over the radio waves came the familiar strains of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah. I sat and listened to the whole piece and by the end the tears were streaming down my cheeks. God spoke to me through that beautiful music and reminded me of the reason for all our preparations. Our Messiah is coming! He will be crowned King of Kings, and Lord of Lords! And He shall reign forever and ever. Hallelujah!

Advent: Preparing for Christmas (3)

Our time of waiting is more than half over. Christmas draws near! This morning during worship we lit the third candle of our Advent wreath. Here's what was in today's bulletin.


"Here at St. Andrew's we have been lighting one candle each week during Advent (the 4 Sundays preceding Christmas). There are many symbols associated with this tradition. The wreath, an unending circle, has long represented eternal life. Gerry Bowler suggests in The World Encyclopedia of Christmas that it may also foreshadow Christ's crown of thorns. You will notice that 3 candles are purple - the liturgical colour for Advent. They represent Hope, Peace and Love. This week we'll light the one pink candle - the liturgical colour for Joy. As the darkness of December deepens, the candlelight grows until Christmas Eve when we will light the white Christ candle. God has sent us the Light of lights!"

Symbols and visual aids are useful in worship. They help us 'see' our faith in new ways. However, if the symbol is to stay meaningful, we must know the history behind it. This is why I feel it is so important to keep teaching others, and learning things myself, about worship, how and why we do what we do. I'm sure at some point this thought alone will provide material for a post or two!

The days are still getting shorter; the darkness grows longer. Look ahead, my friend, your redemption draws nigh!

'Twas in the Moon of Wintertime

All week long this carol has been running through my head. I hadn't really thought to post on it until I saw this lovely photo posted on a blog I found recently and have been visiting. The full moon has been casting lacy shadows from bare branches on the snow, and although it has been very cold this week, I have still appreciated and enjoyed the beauty of the moonlight.

Father Jean de Brebeuf (1593-1649)was a Jesuit from France who came to what is now Ontario in the 1600's to minister to the Huron Indians. His insight into their culture and his recognition of the strength of their beliefs is something that amazes me. Although the Huron nation was scattered by the Iroquois, the words of this carol survived in the Huron language for 100 years before it was translated into French. An English translation followed in 1926 by Jesse Edgar Middleton and that is what is commonly sung today. It is still under copyright so I won't include all the words here. I hope you're able to read them in your own hymnal. This is thought to be the first Christmas carol written in North America; I'm so glad I chose to include it in our Christmas Eve service!
Sources: Gerry Bowler's The World Encyclopedia of Christmas, pub. by McClelland & Stewart Ltd. c. 2000; and The Huron Carol, illustrated by Frances Tyrrell, pub. by Lester & Orpen Dennys Limited, c. 1990.

'Twas in the moon of wintertime
When all the birds had fled,
That mighty Gitchi-Manitou
Sent angel choirs instead...
"Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born,
In excelsis gloria!"

Within a lodge of broken bark
The tender Babe was found...
And as the hunter braves drew nigh
The angel song rang loud and high:
"Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born,
In excelsis gloria!"


...The chiefs from far before Him knelt
With gifts of fox and beaver pelt.
"Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born,
In excelsis gloria!"

O children of the forest free,
O sons of Manitou,
The Holy Child of earth and heaven
Is born today for you...
"Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born,
In excelsis gloria!"
Words translation by J.E. Middleton, c. The Frederick Harris Music Co. Ltd.

Prepare the way of the Lord!

On Sunday the choir sang a moving arrangement of text from Isaiah 40:1, 3-5 and 7:14 in a setting by Lloyd Larson (pub. 1993 by Providence Press under the title: A Voice Cries Out, "Prepare the Way of the Lord"). I would guess these verses to be some of the most commonly used for Advent anthems. It brought 2 streams of thought to mind.

1. How do we prepare the way for the Lord? In the Bible, we have examples like Isaiah who proclaimed the coming of the Messiah many years before the promise was fulfilled. He didn't know that at the time, of course; he was relaying the message God gave him. The other example that came to mind was John the Baptist. His proclamation was perhaps more desperate, and definitely more immediate as he knew that Christ, the Messiah, was on earth. So, back to my question. We prepare the way for the Lord by proclaiming that He has come, and that He will return and we must be ready for that day.


2. There are 3 musical settings of this text that pop into my head - probably more if I really stopped to think about it.

• The first is from Handel's Messiah - the tenor, assuming he does it well, boldly proclaims "...make straight in the desert (rest) a highway (rest) for our God. (chord, chord)."
• The second is the one I mentioned above by Larson. The part I find especially moving comes after a quiet section of "Comfort, comfort my people" when the choir builds on the phrase "The glory of the Lord shall be revealed!" - then moves right into "A voice cries out, 'Prepare the way of the Lord,'" etc.
• The third one, which I'd love to use at the beginning of a Christmas Eve service (maybe next year?!) is the version from Godspell. Wouldn't that be an exciting way to herald the birth of our Lord?
  

Advent: Preparing for Christmas (2)

Already we have arrived at the second Sunday of Advent. For a few years now, I have submitted little write ups for our church bulletin during the Advent/Christmas season. Sometimes these paragraphs specifically address the music being used that week. Other times they have been about Christmas customs, symbols or legends. Here's what appeared in today's bulletin.

There are many colours and symbols associated with the Christmas season. You will notice that the tree in the sanctuary is decorated in white, red, gold and silver. Why? White is the symbol of the purity of Jesus Christ. Red represents His shed blood. Christ's death on the cross brings eternal life to those who believe and put their trust in Him. Gold and silver represent wealth and royalty. When Christ returns to earth, He will be crowned King for all time. Hallelujah! There is one apple hanging on the christmas tree. Can you find it? The apple is there as a symbol of the first sin. Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. You may wonder how this ties in with Christmas. Without their sin, we would have no need of a Saviour and no reason to celebrate Jesus' birth.

Advent: Preparing for Christmas

I was recently asked why it’s okay to decorate the church for Christmas, but we wait to sing Christmas carols until Dec. 24. I think of decorating as part of our preparation for Christ’s coming. Expectant parents do many things ahead of the birth of their baby to prepare for its coming. They shop for a crib, rocking chair, and clothes. They paint the baby’s room and read books on baby care. Families only celebrate the baby’s arrival, comment on its’ beautiful appearance and take it to the room they have prepared once it is born. Advent carols and decorating are ways we prepare for Christ’s arrival. We celebrate and sing Christmas carols when we celebrate His birth.