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Christmas Carols -- Tradition Or Religion
It's time to sing, “I will honor Christmas in my heart ,
and try to keep it all the year..” .Carols remind us –
here is Christmas again! .We can ask in tunes “Isn't
there anybody who knows what Christmas is all about?”
It is interesting to note that carols had nothing to do
with the birth of Christ in the past. They were actually
secular dances which used to take place at any point of
the year .The scene reminded of “coronet” and from there
we get “carols”. It was from 16th century onwards they
came to be known as songs at the time of Christmas. So ,
carols are no more dances but religious hymns.
People around the world are so engrossed in listening to
carols that they sometimes forget to ask a very interesting
question “Why do we sing carols?”. One can get the answer
in the story about the birth of Jesus. The idea of singing
carols came from the songs the angels sang when they met the
shepherds to give the news of Christ's birth. This history
makes it clear why carols tell the story of the birth of
the Christ.
In 13th century carols were communal songs but later on they
got associated with church and Christmas. They involve a
performance of the choric singers. “ Personent ho die” and
“Angels” were popular Middle English carols .But it lost its
popularity after Reformation. Arthur Sullivan revived the
essence of Christmas songs with “It came upon a midnight clear”.
England , Poland , Bulgaria perform the tradition of
“wassailing”, in which groups of singers travel from house
to house . They sing songs and common people reward them
with money or mince pies and even with a glass of an
appropriate drink. All the money that is collected is
given to charity.
' Carols by Candlelight ' concerts rock the Australian city
nights . Opera singers in Melbourne are quite famous for
Christmas songs.
A study shows that gradually carols are becoming secular
once again. Christmas songs are no more solely sung by
Bishops and clergy but now by bands. Though the dictionary
meaning of carols is ‘joyful religious song celebrating the
birth of Christ' yet they are now played on musical
instruments and people around the world cannot stop
themselves from enjoying the compositions and modern musical
arrangements of Salvation Army Brass Bands. Carols are
getting popular day by day through the medium of on line
greeting cards.
Dickens can never be forgotten when an analysis is carried
out on Christmas and its songs. 'A Christmas Carol ' is
perhaps the best writing which conveys the essence of the
same. Scrooge is the apt example for all Christians who need
to understand what Christmas spirit is all about. One can only
appreciate carols if he is a true Christian.
But modern scenario is different. It sounds peculiar to note
that carols are still so popular in The main reason is -the songs
are not just religious but lyrics arranged in excellent tunes.
Here lies the universality of Christmas songs.
Carols purify our souls and this the time we really feel to be
the blessed children of God. But the spirit invites all to
participate in the tunes irrespective of the religions. Modern
study shows – musicians around the world are interested to
experiment with carol tunes. The question that may crop up at
this juncture is – will carols be again secular music ?
Article written by Sean Carter.