“Were it not for a broken organ, there would not have been a Silent Night.” ~ from the book Then Sings My Soul by Robert J. Morgan
Tonight marks the 202nd year that Silent Night will be sung at Christmas Eve services. In 1818, Father Joseph Mohr was struggling with music for a worship service since the organ was not working. It resulted in his writing the words to Silent Night and asking his organist, Franz Gruber, to create a tune for guitar accompaniment.
Of all things, it was the organ repairman who may have contributed to Silent Night’s success on more than just that first Christmas. He spread the score and lyrics in the Austrian region where it came to the attention of the Strasser Family singers (sort of like the Von Trapp Family Singers a century or so later.) They sang it around the region and it gained recognition and ultimately was in print, first in a German-language songbook and ultimately in English and other languages.
May we, like that organist, share the joy of Silent Night, in song and spirit and action.
Enjoy the day – and night – filled with the Spirit!
Lectionary Texts for Sunday, December 29, 2019:
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