Can We Talk 2

Maybe not midnight, maybe not clear

         Christmas stories lean more on legend and pictures than Biblical account. For instance, the Bible does not say "3" wise men, just that they brought 3 kinds of gifts. Mary may have walked all the way; there is no donkey mentioned. There was no singing according to the Bible, and the wise men came much later, when the baby was older and they actually had a house, not a stable. And the stable itself might have been a cave used for animals, which was common then.

         The hymn I'm printing here is an example, although excellent in many ways, and makes us nostalgic and comforted because of its familiarity. We don't know that it was midnight or if the skies were clear. There is no mention of music, much less gold harps. Yet much of the song rings true.

It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

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, good will 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 heav'nly music floats O'er all the weary world:
Above its sad and lowly plains, They bend on hov'ring wing,
And ever o'er its Bable 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!

All 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 gland and golden hours, Come swiftly on the wing;
O rest beside the weary road, And hear the angels sing!

Foe lo! the days are hastening on, By prophet bards foretold,
When with the ever circling years, Comes around 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.

         There's the contrast of beautiful music, peace, and awe with the noise and strife of men. That beautiful moment of good news and hope has been followed by thousands of "years of wrong". Humans toil and are crushed by the load of life's burdens, and time keeps going by. Yet we still have that hope of the "age of gold" when all unite in peace and join in that angelic message.

         The lyrics were written by Edmund Sears in 1849. There was a revolution in Europe and the U.S. was at war with Mexico. This weighed heavily upon him as he listened to the Christmas greetings and music. The tune was probably different the first time it was performed, and only later picked up the tune we all know.