Music for Advent and Christmas
The month of December starts the new liturgical year as we open the season of Advent on December 1. Despite what the secular world says with the advertisements and decorations, we pause for the four weeks before Christmas in a season of waiting and reflection as we prepare for the coming of our Savior. Due to this quiet season of anticipation in Advent, our music will take on a special quality this month. After the long green season since Pentecost, we begin the festival half of the year with changes in our music in worship. Our service music shifts to singing a Kyrie instead of a Gloria or other song of praise, and our Sanctus and Agnus Dei come from the New Plainsong setting by David Hurd as we quiet our hearts and minds together. Our hymns also will focus on Advent themes. To especially draw attention to the coming of Christ, we will be changing what we sing to open the services in Advent. Instead of a different processional hymn each week, we will sing two verses of O come, O come, Emmanuel so you will have the opportunity to sing this haunting plainsong tune multiple times throughout the season while also savoring the beautiful ninth century text that sums up our Advent hope.
After a quiet Advent, we will celebrate our Savior’s birth with wonderful Christmas services. On Christmas Eve, all three services will have music. The 3:00 PM service will feature the Christmas Pageant and will include portions of many favorite carols that are suitable for children and families. Our congregation will assist the children in the pageant by singing carols with the children between different parts of the Christmas story. At 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM, we will have traditional Christmas services with our choir assisting in music leadership. We will sing many Christmas favorites, light candles while singing the beautiful carol Silent night, holy night, and close the service with the favorite Joy to the world. Please make plans to join us on Christmas Eve.
On the Sunday following Christmas, December 29, we will continue our Christmastide celebrations with an abbreviated Service of Lessons and Carols, with Holy Eucharist. This service will feature several short Christmas lessons from the Gospels, each followed by a beloved carol. This has been adapted from the famous Service of Nine Lessons and Carols from Kings College, Cambridge, which is experienced every year by millions via radio. Following these lessons, we will share communion together. The congregation will be invited to sing all the music this Sunday and it should be a memorable experience for everyone.
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord.