O, Holy Night

Legend has it that on Christmas Eve 1871, in the midst of fierce fighting between the armies of Germany and France, during the Franco-Prussian War, a French soldier suddenly jumped out of hole and began singing “Cantique de Noel”, the French version of the Christmas Carol, “O Holy Night”.  

O Holy Night
The stars are brightly shining
It is the night of our dear Savior's birth
Long lay the world in sin and e'er pining
'Til He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

The Germans were so moved that they responded by singing one of Luther’s hymns.  The “songfest” encouraged the soldiers to honor a truce for 24 hours on Christmas.¹

This imagery sends a strong message to me. What is powerful enough to cease the darkness of war? The new and glorious morn spoken of in this carol; a reminder that, in the meridian of time, Christ came for us all and by Him all darkness will flee and “all oppression shall cease”.

Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf shared this: “When darkness creeps into our lives, as it often does, our daily restoration opens our hearts to heavenly light, which illuminates our souls, chasing away shadows, fears, and doubts . . . We need an ongoing, daily infusion of heavenly light. We need “times of refreshing.” Times of personal restoration” (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Daily Restoration, General Conference, October 2021).

In truth, life is hard and it is full of many hard times and many hard things. We all have our share of disappointments and failures. We all have our share of dark times and long nights. But the message of hope is this: morning always comes because of and through Jesus Christ.

Your dark time may be a physical or mental illness. Your dark time may be what seems to be unbearable stress. Your dark time may be a broken home or a tattered relationship. Your dark time may be doubt or fear. Whatever your dark time is or will be, your new morning will come and that “thrill of hope” will carry you until “yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.”

During a particularly challenging time for me, I was encouraged by a friend who had been inspired by this carol and wrote me this simple note: “Whatever it is that binds us down WILL come to an end through the Savior. Your new morning will come. Just believe.”

A new year is ahead—with 365 new mornings. Each day is an opportunity to be better or to get better. And if it doesn’t happen tomorrow or the next day, or the next, just remember that a new morning is ALWAYS on the horizon.

So, in your dark, long nights, “fall on your knees”. Spend more time seeking the light of heaven. Your new morning will come.

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Author’s note: On Christmas Eve 2021, I read a Facebook post from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland where he recounted a personal Christmas experience that changed his perspective of Christmas. In part, he shared this self-rebuke, “…Put your theology where your Christmas carols are” (read his full post here). I decided to take some time and think through the messages of some of these carols. I rediscovered that the truths these Christmas hymns teach can help us understand the “good tidings of great joy” (Luke 2:10) spoken of by the angel to the shepherds on the night of the Savior’s birth.

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1"The Story Behind 'O Holy Night'”, Dr. Jeff Sanders

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Lead Photo by Jaka Škrlep on Unsplash