Loud Night, Holy Night

Growing up, one of my favorite moments of the Christmas season was the annual Christmas Eve Candlelight service.  It was always a special time.  The entire family would gather together, dress up in our finest, and drive to church.  The service was always packed out so it was fun to see both old and new faces.  Everyone would get a candle, and at the end of service the lights were turned down low and everyone sang Silent Night a capella as each candle was lit. I savored every moment of it.

As I matured, however, I started thinking about the words that we were singing and I found myself somewhat perplexed.  Was the night really “silent?”  Was all “calm and bright?” 

Now, as I read the events surrounding the story of the birth of Christ, I cannot help but believe that the night may not have been as silent as we like to think…and sing...

Luke 2 details three important events that happened on the night of Jesus’ birth.  I believe that they all suggest that the night wasn’t silent at all:

1.      In Luke 2:14, a host of angels suddenly appear “praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.’”  This suggests that even the heavenly beings could not keep silent about the birth of Jesus.  The shepherds immediately went to Bethlehem to both see Jesus and tell others how they learned about Him.

2.      Luke 2:18 says that all who heard what the shepherds told them “wondered.”  I imagine that this wondering was not silent, but instead vocal.  This is contextually possible if the “but” at the beginning of verse 19 is taken as “on the contrary.”  Mary, unlike the others, treasured the shepherds’ words, “pondering them in her heart.”

3.      Luke 2:20 says that when the shepherds went back to their fields, that they “[glorified] and [praised] God for all that they had heard and seen.”  This doesn’t sound like it was silent at all!

Perhaps it isn't as catchy to turn down the lights, light a candle and sing, "Loud night, holy night," but it seems that we would be more accurate in doing so.

As we continue to celebrate Christmas two millennia after this event, may we imitate the characters present at the birth of Christ, glorifying God for the Savior that has been born.  The birth of Jesus is a glorious event that deserves to be continually celebrated and vocalized, especially in a culture that wants to snuff out the “Christ” in “Christmas.”