It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

We just learned about the Christmas song O Come O Come Emmanuel.

Another famous Christmas song is It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.

This song came from a poem written by a church leader named Edmund Sears in Massachusetts in 1850.
Sears asked his friend Richard Storrs to write the music for it, since he worked for the church writing hymns.

When Sears wrote this, there was a war going on between America and Mexico, and Sears was sad that people were fighting.
So he wrote this song hoping to get people to think about the message that the angels gave to the shepherds, about peace on the earth and goodwill to men.

Some of the verses are not very happy and talk about war or the pain or hard work, so some people skip those verses when they print out the songs, but the message of Sears was really for those people to hopefully stop fighting and being sad and think about good things like heaven and angels.

Lyrics:

It came upon the midnight clear, That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth, To touch their harps of gold:
"Peace on the earth, goodwill to men, From heaven's all-gracious King."
The world in solemn stillness lay, To hear the angels sing.

Still through the cloven skies they come, With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats O'er all the weary world;
Above its sad and lowly plains, They bend on hovering wing,
And ever o'er its babel sounds The blessed angels sing.

Yet with the woes of sin and strife The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel-strain have rolled Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not The love-song which they bring;
O hush the noise, ye men of strife, And hear the angels sing.

And ye, beneath life's crushing load, Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way With painful steps and slow,
Look now! for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road, And hear the angels sing!

For lo!, the days are hastening on, By prophet bards foretold,
When with the ever-circling years Comes round the age of gold
When peace shall over all the earth Its ancient splendors fling,
And the whole world give back the song Which now the angels sing.


(from: wikipedia - it came upon the midnight clear)


It Came Upon A Midnight Clear (Remastered 1999) - Frank Sinatra


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Gutenberg Bible

O Come, O Come, Emmanuael

We just learned about the O Little Town of Bethlehem.

Another famous Christmas song is O Come, O Come, Emmanuael.

This is a very old song, going back all the way to before the year 600 AD.
The words for the song were first written in Latin, in an old song called O Antiphons, that was sung by Monks around Christmas time.

The music for the song was written into a book around 1851 in England, but people think that song was first written hundreds of years before some time in France.

In 1861 an English priest named John Mason Neale translated the words from Latin into English and put it into hymnals for people to sing.
So it is a very very old song, and has become famous all over the world as a Christmas song!

One famous thing about the song is that each verse starts with a different name for Jesus, like Emmanuel, Rod of Jesse, Dayspring from on high, Key of David, and Adonai.

O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free Thine own from Satan's tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save, And give them victory o'er the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Dayspring, from on high, And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come And open wide our heav'nly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Adonai, Lord of might, Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times didst give the law In cloud and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel.


(from: wikipedia - o come, o come, emmanuael)



O Come O Come Emmanuel (feat. Naomi Raine & Nate Moore) - Maverick City | TRIBL - TRIBL


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Devshirme

O Little Town of Bethlehem

We just learned about the song O Come All Ye Faithful.

Another famous Christmas song is O Little Town of Bethlehem.

The words for this song were written by a priest named Phillip Brooks in Philadelphia, after he traveled to Israel and saw the town of Bethlehem.

When he came back home he told the church organist Lewis Redner to write the music for it to be played a week later.
Redner didn't work on it all week and went to sleep Saturday night after not even writing a single note.

He said later that he woke up late in the night like he had an angel whispering in his ear, and he quickly grabbed some paper and wrote down the melody for the music.
The next morning he wrote the harmony part for the music on the way to church, and after that it was printed in a book called The Church Porch and became famous.


(from: wikipedia - o little town of bethlehem)



O Little Town Of Bethlehem - Cedarmont Kids

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Fall of Constantinople

O Come All Ye Faithful

We just learned about the Christmas song O Holy Night.

Another famous Christmas song is O Come All Ye Faithful.

This song was first wrirten in Latin, and was called "Adeste Fidelis" which means "All Ye Faithful".
No one is really sure who wrote the words or music for this song.
A bunch of different copies of it have been found in countries like England and Portugal, and no one is really sure who wrote it first.

In 1841 the priest Frederick Oakeley wrote it in English, and those are pretty close to the words and music we use today.

The song in Latin:
Adeste fideles læti triumphantes, Venite, venite in Bethlehem.
Natum videte Regem angelorum: Venite adoremus (3×) Dominum.

Deum de Deo, lumen de lumine Gestant puellæ viscera
Deum verum, genitum non factum. Venite adoremus (3×) Dominum.

Cantet nunc io, chorus angelorum; Cantet nunc aula cælestium,
Gloria, gloria in excelsis Deo, Venite adoremus (3×) Dominum.

Ergo qui natus die hodierna. Jesu, tibi sit gloria,
Patris æterni Verbum caro factum. Venite adoremus (3×) Dominum.

The song in English:
O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant! O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him Born the King of Angels: O come, let us adore Him, (3×) Christ the Lord.

God of God, light of light, Lo, he abhors not the Virgin's womb;
Very God, begotten, not created O come, let us adore Him, (3×) Christ the Lord.

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation, Sing, all ye citizens of Heaven above!
Glory to God, glory in the highest: O come, let us adore Him, (3×) Christ the Lord.

Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning; Jesus, to thee be glory given!
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing! O come, let us adore Him, (3×) Christ the Lord.


(from: wikipedia - o come, all ye faithful)



Pentatonix - O Come, All Ye Faithful (Official Video) - Pentatonix

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Avignon Papacy

O Holy Night

We just learned about the Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.

Another famous Christmas song is O Holy Night.

The words for this song were first written in 1843 by a French poet named Placide Cappeau.
In Roquemare France the church organ had been fixed, and the priest asked Placide to write a poem to celebrate.
In French the poem started with the words "Minuit, chrétiens! c'est l'heure solennelle" which means "Midnight, Christians, is the solemn hour".

In 1847 a musician named Adolphe Adam wrote the music to go with the poem.
After it became famous in France, it was later written in English by John Sullivan Dwight in 1855.

The song was very popular in parts of America during the Civil War with people who thought slavery was bad,
because of the words from the song: "Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother,"

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining, It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth;
Long lay the world in sin and error pining, 'Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn;
Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices! O night divine! O night when Christ was born.
O night, O holy night, O night divine.

Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming; With glowing hearts by his cradle we stand:
So, led by light of a star sweetly gleaming, Here come the wise men from Orient land,
The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger, In all our trials born to be our friend;
He knows our need, To our weakness no stranger! Behold your King! Before Him lowly bend!
Behold your King! your King! before him bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is Love and His gospel is Peace;
Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother, And in his name all oppression shall cease,
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful Chorus raise we; Let all within us praise his Holy name!
Christ is the Lord, then ever! ever praise we! His pow'r and glory, evermore proclaim!
His pow'r and glory, evermore proclaim!


(from: wikipedia - o holy night)



Josh Groban - O Holy Night [with lyrics] - Worship Videos


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Avignon Papacy

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

We just learned about the Away in a Manger.

Another famous Christmas song is Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.

This was first written by Charles Wesley in 1739 in England.
When Wesley first wrote it, he called it "Hark! how all the welkin rings", where the word welkin means sky.
In 1840 another person changed it to the words Hark! The Herald Angels Sing that we know of today.

The tune for the song is from the famous composer Felix Mendelssohn's music called Festgesang.

Hark! The herald-angels sing "Glory to the newborn king;
Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled" Joyful all ye nations rise, Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim "Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald-angels sing "Glory to the new-born king"

Christ, by highest heaven adored Christ, the everlasting Lord,
Late in time behold Him come Offspring of a Virgin's womb:
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald-angels sing "Glory to the newborn King"

Hail the Heaven-born Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings, Risen with healing in His wings;
Mild He lays His glory by Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing "Glory to the new-born king"


(from: wikipedia - hark! the herald angels sing)



Hark the Herald Angels Sing with Lyrics | Christmas Carol & Song - Christmas Songs and Carols - Love to Sing

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Mirabilia Descripta

Away in a Manger

We just learned about the Christmas song We Three Kings.

Another famous Christmas song is Away in a Manger.

For a very long time, people thought that the words for this song were written in 1883 by Martin Luther, and it was even sometimes called Luther's Cradle Song.
But after going back and looking at the writing, people now think that the words were first written in English somewhere earlier in America, and then later translated to German.

There are two popular tunes that people sing this song to. The one that is most popular in America was wrriten by James R. Murray in 1887. The other one that is more popular in Britan was written by William J. Kirkpatrick.


(from: wikipedia - away in a manger)


#4 Away in a Manger - James Ramsey Murray - Ukulele - Amazing Uku


Away in a Manger (Kirkpatrick and Murray versions) - Easy Piano Video Sheet - HaoStaff Official

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Wycliffe's Bible

We Three Kings

We just learned about the Silent Night.

Another famous Christmas song is We Three Kings, also called Three Kings of Orient, or The Quest of the Magi.
It was written in 1857 in New York by John Henry Hopkins Jr.

Hopkins was working as a church leader in Pennsylvania, and wrote the song for a Christmas pageant, based on the story in the book of Matthew chapter 2.
In the pageant he had each wise man sing one verse, and then all three would sing the final verse.
The Bible doesn't actually say there were three kings, it just says there were three gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh.
It also doesn't say who the kings were, but later on in church history people think the wise men were named Gaspard, Melchior and Balthazar.

After the pageant it was just a song that his family and friends would sing together at Christmas time, but they all liked it so much he later decided to have it printed in a book of carols in 1916.
It then became famous all over the world, and was one of the first famous Christmas songs that was created in America.

Lyrics:
[Sung by All] We Three Kings of Orient are, Bearing gifts we traverse afar, Field and fountain, Moor and mountain, Following yonder Star.
CHORUS: O Star of Wonder, Star of Night, Star with Royal Beauty bright, Westward leading, Still proceeding, Guide us to Thy perfect Light.
[Sung by Gaspard] Born a King on Bethlehem plain, Gold I bring to crown Him again, King for ever, Ceasing never Over us all to reign.
[CHORUS]
[Sung by Melchior] Frankincense to offer have I, Incense owns a Deity nigh: Prayer and praising All men raising, Worship Him God on High.
[CHORUS]
[Sung by Balthazar] Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume Breathes a life of gathering gloom; Sorrowing, sighing, Bleeding, dying, Sealed in the stone-cold tomb.
[CHORUS]
[Sung by All] Glorious now behold Him arise, King, and God, and Sacrifice; Heav’n sings Hallelujah: Hallelujah the earth replies.
[CHORUS]


(from: wikipedia - we three kings)



We Three Kings - Claymation Christmas HQ - PigsAndSquigs
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Silent Night

We just learned about the Lift High the Cross, by Joseph Mohr and Franz Xaver Gruber in 1818 in Austria.

One of the most famous Christmas songs is Silent Night.

The German name for this song is "Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht".
Mohr had written the song as a poem, and wanted Gruber to write the music to go with it for a Christmas church service.
A river had flooded the church and the organ didn't work anymore, so Gruber wrote music for the guitar.
It was later written in English in 1859 in New York City.

One time on a Christmas Eve in 1914 when British and German soldiers were at war, both sides stop fighting for one night and sang Silent Night in English or Stille Nacht in German, and went out to meet each other on the battlefield in peace.
It was called the Christmas Truce of 1914.


(from: wikipedia - silent night)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Divine Comedy - Purgatorio