Confessing Evangelical

I couldn't let Christmas pass without posting this wonderful Christmas hymn by Frank Houghton. I was playing the organ at our old church this evening, and this was the closing hymn. What a great way to end the Christmas season:

Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becamest poor;
Thrones for a manger didst surrender,
Sapphire-paved courts for stable floor.
Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour,
All for love's sake becamest poor.

Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man;
Stooping so low, but sinners raising
Heavenward by thine eternal plan.
Thou who art God beyond all praising,
All for love's sake becamest man.

Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.
Emmanuel, within us dwelling,
Make us what thou wouldst have us be.
Thou who art love beyond all telling,
Saviour and King, we worship thee.

The hymn is based on one of my favourite Bible verses, 2 Corinthians 8:9, and is sung to the tune FRAGRANCE, a gorgeous French carol tune (of which a snippet can be heard as track 14 here; a fuller version, in a not-to-my-taste-but-it'll-give-you-the-idea arrangement, can be heard here, MP3).

Frank Houghton was editorial secretary for the China Inland Mission (now OMF), and he wrote the hymn in the aftermath of the savage martyrdom of two missionaries, John and Betty Stam, who were beheaded by bandits in China in 1934 (their three-month old daughter miraculously survived, unnoticed by the bandits). The Stams' great-nephew, Chip Stam, takes up the story:

The news of these sorrows had reached the mission's headquarters in Shanghai. Though this was a very dangerous time for both the Chinese Christians and the foreign missionaries, Frank Houghton decided he needed to begin a tour through the country to visit various missionary outposts. While traveling over the mountains of Szechwan, the powerful and comforting words of 2 Corinthians 8:9, "though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor," were transformed into this beautiful Christmas hymn.

I already loved this hymn, but the "backstory" only adds to its power. Had it been written in comfortable, western safety, this would already be a great hymn. But how moving it is to think of a hymn so full of the love of God being written in circumstances of such precariousness and fear.

Labels: christmas, hymns, martyrs, missionaries

O admirable exchange,
the Creator of the human race,
taking upon himself a body and a soul,
has vouchsafed to be born of a Virgin,
and, appearing here below as man,
has made us partakers of his Divinity.

For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.

- 2 Corinthians 8:9

Labels: christmas, o-antiphons, turvey abbey

The seven "O"s, in reverse order (as can be seen from my previous posts here), make up the words ERO CRAS:

• O Emmanuel


• O Rex Gentium


• O Oriens


• O Clavis David


• O Radix Jesse


• O Adonai


• O Sapientia

"Ero cras" loosely translates as "I shall be there tomorrow" - highly appropriate for the whole season of Advent, and especially so for Christmas Eve.

Labels: advent, christmas, o-antiphons, turvey abbey

Does your granny always tell ya' that the old songs are the best?
Then she's up and rock 'n' rollin' with the rest...

So here it is (nearly) Merry Christmas, and I hope everybody's having too much fun to read blog posts. But hey, I'm not going to let that stop me, whatever Umberto Eco might say. So here's some very non-Slade-esque Christmas music to pass the time.

Now, I may not get the opportunity to follow Thomas' fervent recommendations and watch A Charlie Brown Christmas this year, but I managed the next-best thing: reading The Gospel According To Peanuts while listening to one of my latest eMusic downloads: Vince Guaraldi's 1965 soundtrack album to the film. I'm not normally a jazz fan at all, but I love it.

Other eMusic Christmas downloads (I had a productive morning yesterday):

• Bruce Cockburn's Christmas. Bruce Cockburn is one of my big personal discoveries in 2006 (a good year for finding "new to me" music), after serendipitously chancing upon a couple of his CDs in a charity shop a couple of months ago. His Christmas album is superb, with highlights including the upbeat "Early on one Christmas morn" and gorgeous settings of "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and It Came Upon the Midnight Clear. If you download only one album this Christmas, etc, etc.


• "Slowcore" band Low's festive album, also (imaginatively) called Christmas. Check out the opening track, Just Like Christmas, and also the only original song off the album, If You Were Born Today.

So that should keep me busy for the next few days. But I'm sure I won't be able to resist the occasional blast of Noddy & Co...

Labels: bruce cockburn, christmas, emusic, music, peanuts

In case you haven't been following, Thomas really doesn't think very much of It's a Wonderful Life. Or A Christmas Carol.

Well, I think It's a Wonderful Life is probably an American thing. I saw it a few years back and found it neither particularly inspirational, nor quite as obnoxious as Thomas finds it (though I take his point). It's something that's on at Christmas over here, but it's not something that symbolises what Christmas is for us. (That would be this instead. Or maybe this.)

But anyway, if nothing else, Thomas' series of posts has made me want to check out the Charlie Brown Christmas Special again. Except they're not showing it on any channel in the UK this year, so I guess I won't. Still, at least that'll avoid this type of incident.

Labels: christmas

TK posted this Christmas questionnaire over at her Katie's Beer blog, and I thought I'd give it a whirl:

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?

Mulled wine.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree?

Presents from Father Christmas are wrapped and arrive in a sack in the living room (with small presents in a stocking at the end of the boys' beds). Presents under the tree are from non-magical donors.

3. Colored or white lights on the tree and/or house?

White, for the first year ever. I finally caved in to my wife's preference for white over coloured lights, and I have to admit she was dead right - they look a lot nicer.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?

We don't.

5. When do you put your decorations up?

Today! (I still haven't recovered; the boys got very bouncy...)

6. What is your favorite Christmas dish (excluding dessert)?

A surfeit of roast potatoes.

7. Favorite Christmas memory as a child.

My favourite Christmas experiences from childhood onwards have been visiting York Minster for their Christmas Eve service. It's a few years since last managed this, though.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?

I'm sorry, but what are you talking about? Is there something about him I need to know?

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?

No! Wait till the day itself, I say.

Except (ahem) for this year, where my parents bought us a new flat-screen monitor for our PC. It was sent direct to our house, and I felt I ought to plug it in just to check it worked. The moment it came on, I realised there was no way I could now pack it away till Christmas - it is so much better than the old CRT monitor. Forgive me, Father Christmas, for I have jumped the gun!

And our boys got their main presents from their maternal grandparents today, as we're up with my parents for Christmas itself. For a cute overload, go see these videos of kids on quads (click "more from this user" if you want to see the full set).

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?

Change of direction this year as mentioned above. White lights, gold/copper baubles, gold tinsel. Most tasteful tree we've ever had. Previously, our Christmas decorations have made the place look a bit too much like a pub - my fault.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it?

What snow? This is south-east England - snow is something you get half an inch of some time in January, if you're lucky. (And then the entire country grinds to a halt. The traditional greeting in such circumstances is, "Tsk! It takes us by surprise every year, doesn't it?", with a rueful shake of the head.)

12. Can you ice skate?

Yes, after a fashion. We normally make a trip to Leeds in the new year to go ice-skating in Civic Square*. (* Now renamed "Millennium Square". But as for me and my house...)

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?

The one that stays in my mind most is the Action Man tank I got one year.

14. What’s the most important thing about Christmas for you?

Christmas Eve has always been the real centre of things for me - mystery, wonder and anticipation. The fact that the 24th is now also our younger son's birthday only adds to the enjoyment of the day.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert?

Christmas pudding. Though you can't beat a really good mince pie.

16. What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

Christmas carols.

17. What tops your tree?

This year, an angel and a snowflake. Our older son was bouncing around talking about "the angel and the snowflake", which sounded like a great title for a book about Christmas as a happy blend of religious and secular traditions.

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving?

Giving. By other people, to me. ;-)

19. What is your favorite Christmas song?

"The Three Kings", by Peter Cornelius.

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or yum?

No idea what these are, but I'm going to go with "yuck".

I'm relieved to see that this doesn't appear to be one of those "tag" memes, but if you do answer these questions on your own blog then please let me know in the comments.

Labels: christmas, meme