Christmas Bells
First Published December 22, 2006
Proverbs 150
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.
Praise Him with trumpet sound;
Praise Him with harp and lyre.
Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.
Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
**** ****
One of the highlights of a trip east with my husband was visiting the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Along with a wonderful tour, Jeff arranged for us to have high tea in one of the towers. While we were enjoying scones, crumpets, and tea the church bells rang. Their sound was strong, pure, and resonating; signaling the o’clock. It was beautiful and exhilarating. I was reminded of what it must have been like hundreds of years ago, when church bells were common. Not only did they signal parishioners that services would begin soon, but they also announced special celebrations, like Christ’s birthday.
An article by Rev. Lewis H. How says that large bells appeared in church towers in around A.D. 400. He further describes church bells as being an instrument of praise, dedicated to serving God and cites today’s text. While many bells now-a-days are rung electronically, most in England are rung by hand. The practice and art of hand bell-ringing is called campanology. “Change ringing” is a particular branch of campanology where the bells are rung in a mathematical sequence.
“Carol of the Bells” (Ukrainian Carol) captures the essence of church bells on Christmas morn.
Hark, how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say, throw cares away
Christmas is here, bringing good cheer, to young and old, meek and the bold,
Ding dong ding dong that is their song with joyful ring all caroling
One seems to hear words of good cheer from everywhere filling the air
Oh, how they pound, raising the sound, o'er hill and dale, telling their tale,
Gaily they ring while people sing songs of good cheer, Christmas is here,
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
On, on they send, on without end, their joyful tone to every home
Ding dong ding... dong!
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.
Praise Him with trumpet sound;
Praise Him with harp and lyre.
Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.
Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
**** ****
One of the highlights of a trip east with my husband was visiting the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Along with a wonderful tour, Jeff arranged for us to have high tea in one of the towers. While we were enjoying scones, crumpets, and tea the church bells rang. Their sound was strong, pure, and resonating; signaling the o’clock. It was beautiful and exhilarating. I was reminded of what it must have been like hundreds of years ago, when church bells were common. Not only did they signal parishioners that services would begin soon, but they also announced special celebrations, like Christ’s birthday.
An article by Rev. Lewis H. How says that large bells appeared in church towers in around A.D. 400. He further describes church bells as being an instrument of praise, dedicated to serving God and cites today’s text. While many bells now-a-days are rung electronically, most in England are rung by hand. The practice and art of hand bell-ringing is called campanology. “Change ringing” is a particular branch of campanology where the bells are rung in a mathematical sequence.
“Carol of the Bells” (Ukrainian Carol) captures the essence of church bells on Christmas morn.
Hark, how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say, throw cares away
Christmas is here, bringing good cheer, to young and old, meek and the bold,
Ding dong ding dong that is their song with joyful ring all caroling
One seems to hear words of good cheer from everywhere filling the air
Oh, how they pound, raising the sound, o'er hill and dale, telling their tale,
Gaily they ring while people sing songs of good cheer, Christmas is here,
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,
On, on they send, on without end, their joyful tone to every home
Ding dong ding... dong!
posted by Karen Vaughn | 11:56 AM
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