Most people love them some Christmas music. Even the most dyed-in-the-wool grinches love happy songs about reindeer, the jolly fat man in the red suit or rocking around the Christmas tree. Silver bells, chestnuts roasting, or the girl that’s been chasing the guy all year and forgot the cranberries are all holiday favorites. There are mixed and very strong views as to WHEN Christmas music can start. Some people are chomping at the bit as soon as they get the sand off their toes from the summer. Others want nothing to do with anything Christmas until after thanksgiving. I get Christmas music year round because I have a bunch on my iPod. Alot of it is what I use as my vocal training music by David Phelps. No, not the swimmer. He is one of Bill Gaither’s tenors. If you haven’t heard of him, he’s kind of a cross between Andrea Bocelli and Michael Buble’. To anyone that knows him, you’re probably screaming at your computer saying, “NO HE DOESN”T!!” That’s the closest description I can give you. He actually defies description. He can do everything. Opera, adult contemporary, pop, you name it. He’s technically described as a counter tenor. (n. music. 1. an adult male voice or voice part higher than the tenor. 2. a singer with such a voice; a high tenor.)
He’s my hero. I want to sing like that when I grow up. Let’s face it. I’ll never get there. But that doesn’t stop me from trying. Since I get Christmas music year round, I’m not necessarily jonesing for it as soon as the wather gets cold. Christmas is my second favorite holiday. Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Ok. Yes. Jesus was not born on December 25th. We know. If you study history, and such you will find out that Jesus was likely born in march; sometime around the passover. Who cares. He was born in such a backwoods hick town that very few people acually knew about it, much less recorded the date. Just a few shepherds and some star gazing wizards. The date isn’t actually that important. What’s important is that He was born. The One to thwart Satan’s plan to be equal with God and rule the world. God promised a Messiah to save His people, and Jesus is the One. (I’m over-simplifying this to save time) Sure. Christmas, just like almost everything else has trancended its original meaning. Most people who celebrate Christmas couldn’t give a hoot as to whether Jesus was born or not. Heck. Most people doubt His existence in the first place (or so it seems).
But Christmas music to me is the songs of Jesus’ Birth. From all generations. almost doesn’t even matter who’s singing them. Frank Sinatra, Mandisa, David Bowie, Mariah Carey, almost anyone. For most Christians, it’s their favorite holiday. Memories of family times, festive parties, good times and good cheer give us all that warm fuzzy feeling. Oh yeah. then there’s the Christmas eve Candlelight service or midnight Mass all beautiful in form and spirit.
The reason I’m waxing philosophic about Christmas carols is because recently I was moved to tears because of them: their meaning and effect. Both times were in the span of about 20 minutes. I was asked to be the emergency 3rd string backup for our church’s bell choir as they went and played a Christmas program at a local assisted living facility. The choir director is also a part of an a cappella singing group that took part as well. As we played bells, Andy(the choir director) told the residents to feel free to sing or hum along if they would like. We played the familiar ones. “Angels We Have Heard On High”, “Silent Night”, and others. I didn’t play on all the songs, so when I wasn’t playing I just stood and watched the people. Only I couldn’t. It’s not that I didn’t want to, I couldn’t because I couldn’t see through my tears.
The absolute joy and peace on their faces was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen in my life. Bar none. And the music. The sweet music that I was hearing. Oh my Lord! The bells combined with their humming was some of the sweetest sound that has ever beaten my ear drums! It was almost too much to bear! I found it difficult to keep still as tears streamed down my cheeks. The beauty and majesty of Christmas was alive in that room half full of senior citizens whose younger days were probably spent not all that much differently than ours: working, raising families and the like. I would imagine their days now aren’t very exciting. But for those brief 40 minutes, they got to relive days of Christmases past or maybe dream of the day they get too meet their Savior face to face. Either way, it was an experience I pray to never forget.
The next was when one of the guys from the group, “Cobalt Blue” sang “O Holy Night“. There was one Gentleman, relegated now to a wheelchair, Who couldn’t help singing along. He obviously has sung that song many times in the past, most likely as a solo. He was not shy. He quivered a little. His voice a little raspy, but he knew how to sing. He tried so hard to hit all the notes. and the soloist handled it with as much grace and class as anyone could hope for. He looked him in the eye with a huge smile, sang a little softer to make it a duet. The guy didn’t know the seond verse, so the soloist still sang to him. and finished the song the way the first verse ended so the guy could join him again. Sheer brilliance! I was in awe of the moment. Again.
Every year around this time I get a little, umm, well, off. I get kinda sad that I can’t give the way I feel the important people in my life desrve to receive. I know that it’s the thought that counts, but for me, I honestly want to give way more than I can. And, in the same vein, I’m can’t say that I’m really ever disappointed in a gift. Anybody that goes out of their way to give me a gift humbles me.
But this experience with the bell choir was a gift in itself. I very easily could have missed it. I was on call this past weekend. My job requires that I be on call one night a week and one weekend a month. I can switch, but right now, nobody is too keen on doing that. I didn’t get called and got to partake in a beautiful day, a beautiful program, a beautiful set of moments. Moments forged in a lifetime of Christmas memories. Moments that couldn’t have existed without the wonderful songs of the faith. I’m sure there are beautiful moments like these that don’t include any sectarian dogma. But to me, Christmas is about celebrating the gift of Jesus, the Savior of the world. I know about all of the opposition. It doesn’t make me angry, it makes me sad.
On one hand, I can understand it. I was there. “Christians are all hypocritical weak minded morons that just want my money”. I actually used to believe that. Silly. But now I see. Like John Newton. Former slave trader John Newton. Jesus got a hold of him and turned his life upside down. So much so, in fact, that he ended up writing one of the most beloved hymns in the church: “Amazing Grace“. I once was blind, but now I see. Growing up I knew all the carols. But the words never meant anything until I knew Jesus. “Joy to the world” was the first. Then “Silent night“. “Angels We Have Heard on High“. And most recently, “O Come, All Ye Faithful“. Awesome truths of God in a peaceful melodious setting. Truths that stick with us for a lifetime whether we know what they mean or not. Christmas is a time that most people agree is a time for peace, joy, family and friends, gift giving ad warm fuzzy feelings. To a lot of people “Christmas” has morphed into the secular holiday closer in relation to the pagan religions from which we get most of our symbols: the wreath, the tree, mistletoe. The candy cane was started by a Christian. It’s actually a “J” that, with its stripes, colors and flavor are all symbolic of Jesus. All the symbols and traditions are mostly interchangeable at this point secularists saying that they’re all secular and pagan. Christians all claiming that they’re Christian. The trappings of Christmas are some of both now. deal with it. EVERYONE! Christians and non Christians alike. It goes both ways. Look at the rainbow. The book of Genesis said that God hung the rainbow in the sky as a symbol of his promise that He would never again destroy the earth by water as He did with “Noah’s Flood”. The rainbow still means that to most Christians. However it also has come to mean inclusion and tolerance for all people no matter their race, creed or orientation. Some Christians are pretty wrinkled by that. TOUGH! In this world of “tolerance” (I put it quotes for a reason), we ALL need to be tolerant of each other’s beliefs and opinions. That’s gonna take 1 thing: everybody is gonna have to get some thicker skin. Just because someone’s opinions or belief system is different than yours doesn’t mean you have to get all upset and start screaming for massive social changes and quiet their voice. That goes for everyone! I would like to see a world where Christians are once again allowed to disagree with people and not be ostracized and belittled as haters and bigots. I would also like to see Christians be more accepting of people and love others. The Bible says that they will know us by our love. It happens for a little while at Christmas. Now if we could just learn to extend that kind of acceptance the rest of the year. I would hope that if you don’t give any credibility to God because of the misdeeds of his people, consider this. There are people who treat others poorly in the name of secularism, capitalism, socialism, humanism, satanism, and atheism. Do we give these things any less credibility because of poor decisions? Listen to some of the old songs of the church for the season. Listen to the words. Process them. Research them. Find out the stories of the people that wrote them. You’ll probably find that they didn’t always follow God. They wrote these songs out of love for God, and out of love for people. Jesus said these are the 2 greatest commandments. Love God, Love others. Christmas music reminds me of that. Maybe it can help you believe it too. God Bless and Merry Christmas.
Leif P Gjellestad's Blog 