I love Christmas carols. I look forward to singing them especially at church. That’s why I was shocked to hear a young man make a comment about having to sing “the requisite number of Christmas songs”. In his immaturity, I guess he does not know enough about Christmas carols to understand their depth of meaning and how they became classics.

I bet he doesn’t know that I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day was written by Longfellow during the Civil War. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s son had been crippled in the war, a few years before this poem was written. His wife had died a few years before that. She dripped sealing was on her dress, igniting a blaze. Her husband was there and put out the blaze, but his precious companion died from her injuries. As the war raged on and he grieved his losses, he wrote,

And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”

I wonder if the young man who feels forced to sing Christmas carols knew that God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman was written as a modern alternative to stuffy old church songs. It was well received and became a popular hit. Charles Dickens referenced it in A Christmas Carol, adding to its popularity.

God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
For Jesus Christ our Saviour
Was born upon this day,
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray:
O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy.

One of the most prolific hymn writers of all time, Isaac Watts, wrote Joy to the World. He wrote over 750 songs, and this is one of the most popular. It was not written as a Christmas song, but rather a song of exuberant praise. It caught on as a Christmas carol, because it reminds us that his coming was a time of hope and joy, as is the celebration of Christmas.

Joy to the world! the Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

I could go on. There are many more Christmas carols with amazing stories and compelling lyrics. But the point is made. Christmas carols are not just a meaningless holiday tradition that we are required to include in our celebrations. They are hymns of praise. They are a reminder of the goodness of God. Christmas carols are a call to celebrate God’s goodness in the midst of winter and the winters of the soul.

These ancient hymns connect us with our heritage and our brothers and sisters who have travelled the road before us. They are songs of God’s triumph over the power of sin and death. In my life, I do not feel that a requisite number have to be included, I feel that it is a privilege to praise God using these words, penned by Greats of the Faith. I pray that some day the young man who feels obligated to sing Christmas carols will grasp hold of this rich heritage and rejoice with the ancients.

“God is not dead,” so “Do not be dismayed,” for “He comes to make His blessings flow”. Merry Christmas.