December 25, 2025
Americans in Germany Embrace a British Christmas Tradition
Randy and Katy Smelser describe the pleasure of Advent fellowship in Germany with a church of Anglican tradition.
Articles for tag: Christmas Carols
December 20, 2022
The Christmas Program
In the 1996 Christmas program, Margie Redford's parents included a note to family members that encouraged them to "Greet each morning with this prayer: 'Lord, what are You and I going to do together today? I’m reporting for duty.'" The Christmas programs were a family Christmas tradition.
December 24, 2018
SILENT NIGHT: The Real Message of this Classic Christmas Carol . . . Then and Now
By BJ Krug It was a time of war. A time of upheaval. A time of economic uncertainty, of political uncertainty. In 1816 the Napoleonic Wars had just ended, and the nations of Europe had crashed over and against each other until their borders were no longer recognizable, even to the people living in them. In many places, occupation forces were still present or were only recently withdrawn. A young priest in Austria named Joseph Mohr wrote a poem channeling some of that uncertainty by recasting it in familiar terms of love, care, and affection—a challenge, you might say, to
November 22, 2017
The Night Before Christmas
By Kelly Carr “Twas the night before Christmas, when all through church houses, every creature was stirring, all the staff and some spouses. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, but peek inside the church building””you”ll find everyone there. While others are restful, sugar-plums in their heads, on Christmas Eve church leaders are busy instead. Ministers across the country confirm what you already know: Christmas Eve is one of the best attended services of the year. Large and small congregations, suburban, rural, and city locations all welcome folks who rarely darken the doorway of a church building other
December 19, 2015
Meditating on Peace: December 19
By Becky Ahlberg Saturday, December 19 One of my favorite carols is “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He wrote it on December 25, 1864, while in despair at the horrible cost of the Civil War. He had recently lost his wife and as he nursed his severely injured soldier son, Christmas brought a unique kind of misery that year. He did not know that Gen. Robert E. Lee”s surrender at Appomattox Court House was just a few months away. The despair of war was rife across the country. These are three of the poignant
December 4, 2014
Christmas Icebreakers for Your Group or Class
By Michael C. Mack 1. Describe a time in your childhood when you were chosen for something (i.e., a team, an award or distinction, or an important task). How did it feel to be chosen? 2. What nativity-set traditions, if any, did your family have? 3. With which character in the Christmas story do you most identify? Why? 4. As a child, what were some of your family”s traditions leading up to Christmas Day? (For examples, an Advent wreath, candles, a calendar.) Do you have any traditions today? 5. As a young child, how did you anticipate the coming of
December 22, 2013
The World in a Stable
By Robert F. Hull Jr. Only the Gospel of Luke gives us a manger scene, and we love it. It has become a standard part of our Christmas decorations. But if our manger scenes were modeled strictly after what Luke tells us, they would be quite sparse. There would be Mary and Joseph, and of course, the baby Jesus in a manger, and some shepherds. That”s it. The nativity scene at our house has only one shepherd, but a couple of sheep have followed him from the fields to the stable, and the shepherd has another one draped around his
December 22, 2012
A Clap-Clap-Clap-Clappity Christmas
By Elaine L. Schulte In early December, my husband and I packed for a small-ship adventure in the South Pacific. I phoned our friends and neighbors, Judy and Andy, who would travel with us. “Will there be a pastor for Christmas on such a small ship?” I asked them. “What if God wants us to conduct the Christmas service?” “I”ll bring songbooks, just in case,” Judy replied. “I could do my Christmas reading. . . .” We were willing. On December 17, we flew to Guam, a United States protectorate. Our bus”s guide said, “Don”t expect too much. Guam is
December 23, 2010
Canadian Church Hosts Celtic Christmas
Churchill Meadows Christian Church (Ontario, Canada) held its annual Celtic Christmas celebration this past weekend. The event features fiddlers, bagpipe music, authentic step-dancing, and other ancient elements. Popular Celtic songs and traditional Christmas carols are performed and CMCC minister Jim Tune shares a Christmas message. Read more about this and other ways churches are celebrating Christmas in this week”s Buzz!
December 19, 2010
Interview with Jeff Cox
By Brad Dupray The city of Bell, California, has experienced significant demographic change over the past three decades, transitioning from the post-World War II baby boom of middle-class Anglo families to being a city primarily comprised of Hispanic immigrants. As a means of connecting to its culture, Southland Christian Church conducts Las Posadas, a celebration of Mary and Joseph”s search for a place to stay in Bethlehem. This observance resonates within the Hispanic culture and has served as a means of evangelizing Southland”s community. Jeff Cox came to Christ at Southland as a teen, was hired as youth pastor in
December 5, 2007
Holly, Jolly, and Holy?
A church Christmas pageant blends cultural cheer with the story of Jesus’ birth. Mark A. Taylor reflects on balancing harmless holiday fun with a clear gospel message in a season shaped by commerce.
