Merry Christmas — Eve, Day, and week — to you from Kris and me from the northern suburbs of Chicagoland. Photo by Flaviu Costin on Unsplash What are your top two Christmas songs? Chris Gehrz gives his top ten. Mine is Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Yours? On Sunday I shared a reflection inspired by “
It dawned on me what a gold mine these posts are. I would love an index. You read so many books, but the posts are buried all over the place. I want to go back and read some of your books and comments. Maybe I just don't know how to use this tool.
The first time I heard really heard “ oh holy night” was when a young man at a church I was an associate pastor at sang it one Christmas service, a overwhelmingly beautiful feeling came over me and I cried because of the beauty of not only the words but how he sang it. When I was in seminary I took a music class and we did research some of the “ Christian “ Christmas songs. I found it really fascinating. Merry Christmas to You and Kris and all the other Substack readers.
I became a Christian in my mid-20s. For the first 15 to 20 years, however, I had no use for Christmas music. It was too hard to sing (O Holy Night) or it seemed to whitewash what was really happening with the incarnation. In the last 10 years, that has all changed. While I still can’t sing O Holy Night, it brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. And the other songs have taken on more meaning to me. I think a lot of that had to do with O Come O Come Emmanuel. Given what I understand of the Christmas story, that is a song I can connect with. That I can relate to. Now, every Christmas morning for the last 5 to 7 years, while we are opening gifts, making breakfast, and enjoying the delight of family, I have Handel’s Messiah on in the background. Even thinking of it now makes me all weepy.
Glad “Fairytale of New York” was acknowledged since that’s probably the best Xmas song ever.
After that, I’d say any traditional Christmas song that Sufjan Stevens opts to sing is my favorite.
Wow on the PPE waste. As to Christmas songs, I like Manger Throne by Phil Wickham. Just a taste:
You could have stepped into creation
With fire for all to see
Brought every tribe and nation to their knees
Arriving with the host of heaven
In royal robe and crown
The rulers of the earth all bowing down
But You chose meekness over majesty
Wrapped Your power in humanity
Mary Did You Know has been my fav for several years. Little Drummer Boy, the King and Country version is 2nd.
It dawned on me what a gold mine these posts are. I would love an index. You read so many books, but the posts are buried all over the place. I want to go back and read some of your books and comments. Maybe I just don't know how to use this tool.
Joy to the World
Mary, did you know?
Always appreciate your meanderings 😀
The first time I heard really heard “ oh holy night” was when a young man at a church I was an associate pastor at sang it one Christmas service, a overwhelmingly beautiful feeling came over me and I cried because of the beauty of not only the words but how he sang it. When I was in seminary I took a music class and we did research some of the “ Christian “ Christmas songs. I found it really fascinating. Merry Christmas to You and Kris and all the other Substack readers.
I became a Christian in my mid-20s. For the first 15 to 20 years, however, I had no use for Christmas music. It was too hard to sing (O Holy Night) or it seemed to whitewash what was really happening with the incarnation. In the last 10 years, that has all changed. While I still can’t sing O Holy Night, it brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. And the other songs have taken on more meaning to me. I think a lot of that had to do with O Come O Come Emmanuel. Given what I understand of the Christmas story, that is a song I can connect with. That I can relate to. Now, every Christmas morning for the last 5 to 7 years, while we are opening gifts, making breakfast, and enjoying the delight of family, I have Handel’s Messiah on in the background. Even thinking of it now makes me all weepy.