Advent Day Fourteen: in memoriam

Today's post is in honour of the children and adults

killed in the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, 

December 14, 2012.

***

Coventry Carol

Lullay, thou little tiny child,
By, by, lully, lullay.
Lullay, thou little tiny child.
By, by, lully, lullay.

O sisters, too, how may we do,
For to preserve this day
This poor youngling for whom we sing?

By, by, lully, lullay.

Herod the King, in his raging,
Charged he hath this day, 

His men of might, in his own sight,
All children young to slay.

Then woe is me, poor child, for thee,
And ever mourn and say 

For thy parting, nor say nor sing,
By, by, lully, lullay.

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Advent Day Thirteen: comfort and joy

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen

God rest ye merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay:
Remember Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas 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!

From God our Heavenly Father a blessed angel came

And unto certain shepherds brought tidings of the same:
How that in Bethlehem was born the Son of God by name.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy!

In Bethlehem, in Jewry, the blessed Babe was born
And laid within a manger upon this blessed morn,
For which His mother Mary did nothing take in scorn.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy!

Now to the Lord sing praises, all you within this place,
And with true love and brotherhood each other now embrace.

This holy tide of Christmas all others doth deface.

O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy!

***

***

This is a wonderful song that is so much fun to sing.  It's a bit unusual for a song in a minor key to be so upbeat and cheerful.  When I sing it, I imagine Victorian carolers standing on a street corner -- preferably not too far from a pub, so they can step in and have a little nip of something when it gets too cold outside!

But I also love the words.  They remind me of my favourite moment in Handel's Messiah:  near the beginning, when the Overture is finished and the tenor stands up.  The audience is waiting, breathless with anticipation -- and then he sings the oratorio's first words:

 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people; 

speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem 

and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, 

that her iniquity is pardoned.

"God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen," uses the same word, "comfort."  And why is the song's message comforting?  Because Jesus was born "to save us all from Satan's power when we were gone astray" -- and forgiveness and a new start are available to anyone who asks for it.  No wonder the angels couldn't wait to share this amazing Good News. 

Advent Day Twelve: what I can I give Him

In the Bleak Midwinter

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;         

snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Our God, heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
the Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ. 

Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
but His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
worshiped the Beloved with a kiss. 

What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
if I were a wise man, I would do my part;
yet what I can I give Him:  give my heart.

(Christina Rossetti)

 

***

I think this is one of the most beautiful poems ever written, turned into one of the most beautiful Christmas carols.  I love how the poem shifts back and forth from the earthly to the heavenly:  one moment it is describing the moaning wind, iron-hard earth, and fallen snow; then the awesomeness of God and the angels; then Mary gently kissing the newborn baby.  And the final verse is such a simple, humble commitment of our hearts to Jesus.  Whether we are old or young, strong or weak, rich or poor, we can give Him our hearts, in simple, trusting faith.

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Advent Day Eleven: born again

Jonathan has been a Wiggles fan since he was about four years old -- and since those friendly Aussies are impossible not to like, the rest of us have become fans too.  We probably know every Wiggles song and have seen every DVD.  You want to know what Dorothy the Dinosaur's favourite food is?  We can tell you.  You're wondering the name of the yellow-shirted guy who replaced Greg?  We know.  You want to find out the name of the Wiggles' favourite healthy dish?  We're all over it.*

The Wiggles have a couple of Christmas albums and DVD's, and we especially like the fact that they are unabashedly Christian:  they talk about the Baby Jesus, they show nativity scenes, and they sing songs like this one, "This Little Baby is Born Again."  It's become one of our family's favourite Christmas songs.  It has a very catchy, upbeat tune (watch it HERE in the clip from the Wiggles' "Santa's Rockin'" DVD), and I like the way it blends so many themes:  the joy of birth and family, concern for the poor and lonely, peace, reconciliation, and light.

 

This little baby is born again:  been reborn in the hearts of men

Every Christmas this child is born again

A baby and a mother, one flows from the other

To make a life, to hold it dear, to have a reason to be here

To know that life will never end

From the day you were born

This little baby is born again:  been reborn in the hearts of men

Every Christmas this child is born again

To love the poor and hungry, the broken and the lonely

We’ll put a star on every tree to light the way for you and me

To let you know, to tell you when

Every year he’ll be born

This little baby is born again:  been reborn in the hearts of men

Every Christmas this child is born again

Oh the new morning

Glad to be born in

End of the darkness

Peace in the land

This little baby is born again:  been reborn in the hearts of men

Every Christmas this child is born again. 

******

*Answers:  Roses, Sam, and fruit salad.

Advent Day Ten: every longing heart

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

Come, thou long-expected Jesus, born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee. 
Israel's strength and consolation, hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart.

Born thy people to deliver, born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal spirit rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all sufficient merit, raise us to thy glorious throne.

On his blog yesterday,  Tim wrote a post about when expectations aren't met.  He was discussing it in terms of how we often worry that something bad will happen which ends up not happening -- but that whether it does or does not, God is our refuge, the one we can trust when we are afraid.

His post got me thinking about the book I read (and re-re-re-read) during pregnancy:  What to Expect When You're Expecting.  The connection I made with Tim's blog entry is that many of the things I worried about regarding pregnancy, delivery, and babyhood never did happen (or were short-lived phases), and some of the things I thought would never happen actually did.  There's a lesson there ...  

But beyond that, the book title made me wonder, is there ever a time when we're not expecting?  What would that look like?  I know it's essential to live in the moment; we rob ourselves of joy if we spend all our time in the Might-Have-Been or the Maybe-Soon and fail to appreciate what is. 

Yet I can't imagine not expecting anything.  I can't imagine those afternoons when company we haven't seen in far too long is coming -- and not glancing out the front window every five minutes, wondering if the sound we hear is their car pulling in.  I can't imagine seeing a present under the tree with my name on it -- and not feeling that sense of eagerness to see what gift the person thought would be just right for me.  I can't imagine telling Jonathan we're going to do his favourite things today -- go and do yellow-blue-red at the playground, have Minos takeout food for supper (including "black cake") -- and him not lighting up with excitement and delight at what's to come.

So I think that, as important as it is to live in the moment, we need expectation too.  We need that time after the fireworks are set off to stand hushed and skyward-looking, waiting for the moment when the starburst blooms in the sky.  ("Oooh.  Aaah.")  Otherwise we'd turn away after the rocket shot upward, thinking, "Well, that was interesting" -- and never realize that there's so much more to it.

The same goes for our hearts:  we need something to expect.  There's more to life than just our immediate circumstances, good or bad.  Advent -- and this song, "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus" -- reminds us that our hope, our longing, our joy are in Jesus.   He came, He is here, and He is coming.