Good morning! After a long break, I am itching to blog and reconnect with the community that I missed so much as well as hopefully benefiting anyone who might be reading this. So, onward!
Familiarity Breeds Contempt
Even though we sing Christmas songs only a few times during a specific season of the year even they come become familiar. When we get too familiar with something we tend to toss it aside and never really think and ponder over it. I hope with this short series to get you thinking about the songs that we love but might not understand the depth behind them.
Isaac Waats Was A Rebel
For many years, congregational singing was limited to singing the Psalms of the Old Testament in poetic form. Even as a teenager, Isaac Watts knew that something needed to be done and voiced a concern about music that needed to be updated. A deacon told him to “Give us something better, young man.” So he did.
What followed was prolific song writing that led Isaac Watts to earn the title “The Father of English Hymnody.” In 1719, Watts compiled a set of hymns entitled “Psalms of David Immitated”. These were fresh takes on David’s Psalms, but looking at them from a New Testament perspective.
Psalm 98
The last half of Psalm 98 is a beautiful picture of how all of creation praises God. Isaac Watts used these verses to proclaim a victory not only in Christ’s first coming as a man to this earth, but also His second coming in which “He will judge the world with righteousness.” Joy to the World is more of a Second Coming song then a Christmas song! Take a look at the words Watts used:
Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth; break forth and sing for joy and sing praises…let the sea roar and all it contains, the world and those who dwell in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth; He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity.” Psalm 98:4; 7-9
Help from a Music Superstar
The words to this hymn are punctuated by the triumphant tune that was used as its setting. George Frideric Handel’s melody adds as much triumph as the melodies in his oratorio “Messiah” from which we receive another Christmas standard – The Hallelujah Chorus. Handel, a celebrated Baroque composer, gives us a melody that stands the test of time and, coupled with Watts’ poetry, lifts our spirits again and again. You can find a well-written, more detailed history here.
Your Turn
What are your favorite Christmas hymns (or modern Christmas songs) and why?
