Christmas Is Peace

On the day that the 2023 Thanksgiving turkeys were pardoned,  the White House Christmas tree was delivered, both occurrences  serving as  harbingers of the approaching frantic Christmas season.  But the signs of Christmas had begun to show up back in October when some  stores brought out their tinsel and toys. Like the eager children we were—for  some of us a long time ago—Christmas can’t wait. It  has  become a season, with the family holiday of Thanksgiving only a bump in the road on the way to December 25.

Some people may be turned off by all the commercialism surrounding Christmas,  with the “getting and spending” as William Wordsworth would say, but to a  large number of us, Christmas is more than shopping, decorating the  house  indoors and out, and receiving and giving gifts.  Christmas  has many facets, the most delightful part  of which, I believe, is the carols. They are ubiquitous in the season, and some sophisticated individuals scoff at them and become annoyed hearing them sung in the stores, at the mall, and in elevators. But wherever you hear them, if you listen,  they are sweet  and enjoyable melodies with memorable storylines.  Perhaps you have a favorite carol, such as  “Silent Night,” the runaway favorite of all time, but mine is “Once in Royal David City.” I love the story it recreates and sing it way after Christmas is over and whenever I’m in a happy mood.

What makes carols so special? It’s their simplicity and their message of peace. The word “carol” is wedded to Christmas. It is  applied to no other kind of music, and carols are rarely sung at any other time of year. There is a second Christmas word, “noel,” which means simply “a Christmas hymn.”  Both words are an integral part of our Christmas vocabulary. When carols are sung, they present hymns with  images of angels singing and shepherds in fields looking up to the heavens in wonder.

Carols have the simplicity of the Shaker song  “Tis a Gift to Be Simple,” which was made popular by composer Aaron  Copeland in his 1944  ballet Apalachian Spring. The Shakers liked music that was simple and clear so that everyone could join in  and sing along. This is much like the carols, which have a simple,  singable melody that invites community participation. The carols extoll a simplicity which has  been lost from our world and for which we  yearn today. No wonder they’re sung with such gusto by children’s choirs and theater choruses alike.

The song “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” is not considered a regular carol, but its simplicity and sentiments place it alongside traditional carols. Written in 1863 by the  poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow  during the height of the Civil War that was raging in the United  States, the poem questions the existence of peace in a world at war. Longfellow’s son Charles had been wounded in battle in Orange County, Virginia.  The poet was saddened by that event and was greatly disturbed by the war itself. On Christmas Day as he listened to the sounds of bells ringing out amid  the savage sounds of the war, he wrote the poem that has been set to music and is sung at Christmastime.

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

But as he sat in solemn contemplation, Longfellow despaired that there could be any peace in that present situation.. He wrote:

There is no peace on earth, I said,
For hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth goodwill to men.

However,  several other stanzas of the poem show that  further meditation brought Longfellow a ray of hope, and he wrote:

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, goodwill to men.

In our day the harsh sounds of war are heard in several parts of our world, and the  bombastic words  spoken by many here at home threaten to damage our peace and dim our enjoyment of the music of the season. But we have the prophet  Isaiah’s forceful proclamation to  bring us hope and bolster our spirits: “For unto us a Child is born. . .and His name  shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, the everalsting Father, the Prince of Peace” ((Isaiah 9:6).  Christmas is a gift,  a simple gift of peace to us from the Prince of Peace.

Blessings,

Judith.

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Christmas enters,  streaming lights of joy, bells of hope, and singing
carols  of forgiveness high  up in the bright air.” 
Maya Angelou

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As was announced last month, this is the final blog post. Thanks,
everyone, for being  such supportive readers. Peace and goodwill
to you all. JN