“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night” — Luke 2:8
My favorite Christmas carol is, without doubt, Silent Night. There is a quality to the song that has always soothed me and brought the true meaning of Christmas to mind.
The song, written in 1816 by Josef Mohr, resulted from inspiration the writer of the lyrics received after listening to the Christmas story as written in the Bible books of Luke and Matthew. Mohr took the longer route as he walked home after the Christmas play that evening. He came to a place, overlooking the quiet village he called home, the words of a poem he wrote came back into his mind making him set them down on paper. Mohr realized this might make a beautiful carol and approached his church’s organist, Franz Xaver Gruber, to complete the task. The church organ, broken and unusable, led Gruber to use his guitar to compose the music we now know and love. The carol was presented to the congregation that evening, loved by all.
Today, the carol is sung in over 300 languages around the world at this time of year. A simple poem, inspired the tune that continues to bring a special sense of peace to us each year as it is played.
Here is a rendition I found that I particularly like. It is purely instrumental, acoustic guitar, by artist Martin Tallstrom. I like to think this is how the piece sounded when Gruber first composed it.
Enjoy this season with all of the possibilities it provides to give and share the magic we all experience through the eyes of a child. That childlike wonder and anticipation is infectious…..let it shine in your life and be blessed.
5 Responses
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baidu.com Says:
Fantastic post but I was wanting to know if you could write a
litte more on this topic? I’d be very grateful if you could
elaborate a little bit more. Cheers! -
Torsten Says:
Good post. I definitely appreciate this website. Keep
it up! -
Marisa Franca @ All Our Way Says:
I love this song and it represents everything the season is about. Fun songs are just that — but Silent Night brings tears to my eyes. Thank you for the link. Buon Natale Melissa
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Melissa Says:
Thank you Marisa! Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!
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