Christmas Service (December 25, 1977)
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| (orchestra music playing) | 0:41 | |
| (choir sings) | 0:50 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 2:21 | |
| (choir sings) | 2:30 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 8:22 | |
| (choir sings) | 8:30 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 9:14 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah, Hallelujah ♪ | 9:30 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah, Hallelujah ♪ | 9:34 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah, Hallelujah ♪ | 9:38 | |
| (soft upbeat music) | 10:00 | |
| ♪ Silent night, holy night ♪ | 10:08 | |
| ♪ All is calm, all is bright ♪ | 10:18 | |
| ♪ See the holy mother and child ♪ | 10:27 | |
| (choir sings) | 10:36 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 14:38 | |
| (choir sings) | 20:57 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 21:58 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 22:03 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 22:08 | |
| - | Christ is born. | 22:35 |
| Christ comes down from heaven. | 22:41 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 22:45 | |
| Christ is here on earth. | 22:48 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 22:51 | |
| Sing to the Lord, | 22:54 | |
| all the nations of the earth, | 22:57 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 23:01 | |
| Glory to God glory and the highest hallelujah. | 23:05 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 23:12 | |
| (crowd sings) | 24:05 | |
| Let us pray. | 27:37 | |
| Oh Lord our God, | 27:40 | |
| you humbled yourself that we might be exalted. | 27:42 | |
| You became poor that we might be enriched. | 27:47 | |
| You came to us that we might come to you. | 27:52 | |
| You became human like us, | 27:58 | |
| that we might share in eternal life. | 28:02 | |
| We are gathered here in the presence of this mystery | 28:07 | |
| and this miracle to adore you, | 28:12 | |
| to praise you, | 28:16 | |
| to proclaim you, | 28:17 | |
| to receive your word, | 28:19 | |
| but we know well that we are incapable of doing so | 28:22 | |
| unless you come to give wings to our hearts and thoughts | 28:27 | |
| and enable them to ascend to you, | 28:33 | |
| be in the midst of us, | 28:37 | |
| show us and through your holy spirit, | 28:39 | |
| prepare for us the way that leads to you. | 28:43 | |
| That with our own eyes we may see your light, | 28:48 | |
| which has come into the world and may become your witnesses. | 28:53 | |
| We pray in the spirit of Jesus | 28:59 | |
| whose birth among us celebrate this day, Amen. | 29:02 | |
| - | Let us hear the word of God. | 29:19 |
| In the sixth month, | 29:23 | |
| the angel Gabriel was sent from God | 29:25 | |
| to a city of Galilee named Nazareth | 29:28 | |
| to a Virgin betroth to a man | 29:33 | |
| whose name was Joseph of the house of David | 29:35 | |
| and the Virgin's name was Mary. | 29:40 | |
| And he came to her and said, | 29:43 | |
| "Hey, yo, oh, favored one. | 29:45 | |
| The Lord is with you." | 29:48 | |
| But she was greatly troubled at the saying | 29:51 | |
| and considered in her mind, | 29:53 | |
| what sort of greeting this might be. | 29:56 | |
| And the angel said to her, | 30:00 | |
| "do not be afraid, Mary, | 30:02 | |
| for you have found favor with God and behold, | 30:05 | |
| you will conceive in your womb and bear a son | 30:10 | |
| and you shall call his name, Jesus. | 30:15 | |
| He will be great and will be called | 30:19 | |
| the son of the most high. | 30:22 | |
| And the Lord, | 30:25 | |
| God will give to him the throne of his father, David. | 30:26 | |
| And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever | 30:29 | |
| and of his kingdom there will be no end." | 30:33 | |
| And Mary said to the angel, | 30:38 | |
| "how can this be? | 30:39 | |
| Since I have no husband?" | 30:41 | |
| And the angel said to her, | 30:44 | |
| "the holy spirit will come upon you. | 30:45 | |
| And the power of the most high will overshadow you. | 30:48 | |
| Therefore, the child to be born | 30:52 | |
| will be called Holy the son of God." | 30:54 | |
| And behold, your Kean's woman Elizabeth in her old age | 30:59 | |
| has also conceived a son. | 31:03 | |
| And this is the sixth month with her who was called barren | 31:05 | |
| for with God, | 31:10 | |
| nothing will be impossible. | 31:12 | |
| And Mary said, | 31:15 | |
| "behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. | 31:16 | |
| Let it be to me according to your word." | 31:20 | |
| And the angel departed from her. | 31:24 | |
| - | Here are the reflections | 31:41 |
| of Martin Luther on the annunciation. | 31:42 | |
| The same angel who was sent to Zacharias, | 31:49 | |
| was sent to make an even more amazing announcement | 31:54 | |
| to the Virgin Mary. | 31:57 | |
| We KNOW that this angel was called Gabriel. | 32:00 | |
| The name means power. | 32:02 | |
| He was commander in chief of the heavenly host, | 32:05 | |
| the keeper of the sword. | 32:09 | |
| The marshal of the divine majesty. | 32:11 | |
| A thousand angels were at his back | 32:15 | |
| and their radiance was more dazzling than a hundred sons. | 32:18 | |
| If angels should speak to us in the majesty, | 32:23 | |
| they enjoy in the presence of God. | 32:27 | |
| We could not endure the sight. | 32:30 | |
| The name angel means messenger | 32:33 | |
| and Gabriel the chief | 32:38 | |
| had already been used to carry a message to Zacharias. | 32:39 | |
| Why should God employ angels on such tasks? | 32:43 | |
| Could he not find a priest or a prophet from Jerusalem | 32:49 | |
| or a preacher from Nazareth? | 32:52 | |
| The angels though, | 32:55 | |
| they are mighty princes in heaven | 32:57 | |
| are not ashamed to be used as messengers. | 32:58 | |
| And Gabriel did not resent being used as an errand boy | 33:04 | |
| to carry word to this lowly maiden. | 33:09 | |
| The name of the maiden was Mary. | 33:14 | |
| The Hebrew form of the name is Miriam | 33:17 | |
| and means bitter myrrh. | 33:20 | |
| Why she was given this name, | 33:24 | |
| I do not know. | 33:25 | |
| Say that the Jews had the custom of naming children | 33:27 | |
| from the circumstances of their birth. | 33:31 | |
| Now, the time when Christ should come | 33:35 | |
| was one of utter bitterness | 33:37 | |
| and extreme poverty for the Jews. | 33:39 | |
| They were a downtrodden people | 33:42 | |
| and their lot was pitiable like ours today | 33:44 | |
| so that all might weep bitterly. | 33:48 | |
| Among the downtrodden people, | 33:52 | |
| she was one of the lowliest. | 33:54 | |
| Not a made of high station and a great city, | 33:56 | |
| but a daughter of a plain man in a small town. | 34:00 | |
| And yet this was the one whom God chose. | 34:05 | |
| He might've gone to Jerusalem | 34:10 | |
| and picked out Caiaphas daughter who was fair, | 34:12 | |
| rich plaid and gold embroidered, Raymond | 34:16 | |
| and attended by a retinue of maids in waiting. | 34:21 | |
| But God preferred a lowly made from a mean town. | 34:26 | |
| Quite possibly, Mary was doing the housework | 34:32 | |
| when the angel appeared. | 34:36 | |
| Angels prefer to come to people | 34:38 | |
| when they are fulfilling their calling | 34:40 | |
| and discharging their office. | 34:43 | |
| The angel appeared to the shepherds | 34:46 | |
| as they were watching their flocks to Gideon, | 34:47 | |
| as he was threshing the grain, | 34:52 | |
| to Samson's mother, | 34:55 | |
| as she sat in the field. | 34:57 | |
| Possibly however, the Virgin Mary, | 34:59 | |
| who was very religious was in a corner praying | 35:02 | |
| for the redemption of Israel. | 35:05 | |
| During prayer also, | 35:07 | |
| angels are want to appear. | 35:09 | |
| The angel greeted Mary and said, | 35:13 | |
| "hail Mary full of grace." | 35:16 | |
| That is the Latin rendering, | 35:20 | |
| which unhappily has been taken over literally | 35:22 | |
| into the German. | 35:26 | |
| Tell me, is this good German? | 35:27 | |
| Would any Germans say you are full of grace? | 35:32 | |
| He knows what you mean if you say a purse is full of gold | 35:38 | |
| or a man is full of beer, | 35:44 | |
| but what do you mean when you say a girl is full of grace? | 35:47 | |
| I have translated it. | 35:53 | |
| The out gracious one, | 35:56 | |
| but if I were really to write German, | 35:58 | |
| I would say, | 36:01 | |
| God bless you dear Mary, LIBOR Maria. | 36:02 | |
| For any German knows that this word LIBOR comes right | 36:08 | |
| from the heart. | 36:13 | |
| - | He'd responsively and the back of your hymnal, | 36:22 |
| you will find number 612 Mary's response to the angel. | 36:24 | |
| The Magnificant. | 36:31 | |
| My soul doth magnify the Lord. | 36:37 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 36:41 | |
| For he had through a guarded. | 36:45 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 36:48 | |
| For behold from henceforth. | 36:50 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 36:53 | |
| For he that is mighty has magnified me. | 36:56 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:01 | |
| And his mercy is on them that fear him. | 37:03 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:07 | |
| He had showed his strength with his arm. | 37:10 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:14 | |
| He has put down the mighty from their seat. | 37:18 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:22 | |
| He has filled the hungry with good things. | 37:25 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:29 | |
| He remembering his mercy has helped his servant Israel. | 37:32 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 37:39 | |
| (orchestra music playing) | 37:50 | |
| (choir sings) | 38:40 | |
| - | Christ is born. | 42:17 |
| (crowd mumbles) | 42:21 | |
| The word was made flesh. | 42:23 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 42:26 | |
| In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus | 42:29 | |
| that all the world should be enrolled. | 42:33 | |
| This was the first enrollment | 42:36 | |
| when Quirinius was governor of Syria | 42:37 | |
| and all went to be enrolled each to his own city. | 42:41 | |
| And Joseph also went up from Galilee, | 42:45 | |
| from the city of Nazareth to Judea, | 42:47 | |
| to the city of David, | 42:50 | |
| which is called Bethlehem because he was of the house | 42:52 | |
| and lineage of David to be enrolled with Mary is betrothed, | 42:56 | |
| who was with child. | 43:01 | |
| And while they were there, | 43:03 | |
| the time came for her to be delivered. | 43:05 | |
| She gave birth to her firstborn son | 43:08 | |
| and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger | 43:12 | |
| because there was no place for them in the end. | 43:18 | |
| And in that region, | 43:25 | |
| there were shepherds out in the field, | 43:26 | |
| keeping watch over their flock by night | 43:29 | |
| and an angel of the Lord appeared to them | 43:32 | |
| and the glory of the Lord shone around them | 43:35 | |
| and they were filled with fear. | 43:37 | |
| The angel said to them, | 43:41 | |
| "be not afraid for behold, | 43:43 | |
| I bring you good news of a great joy, | 43:46 | |
| which will come to all the people | 43:51 | |
| or to you is born this day in the city of David, | 43:54 | |
| a savior who is Christ the Lord. | 43:58 | |
| And this will be assigned for you. | 44:03 | |
| You will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths | 44:06 | |
| and lying in a manger." | 44:09 | |
| And suddenly there was with the angel, | 44:12 | |
| a multitude of the heavenly host, | 44:15 | |
| praising God and saying glory to God in the highest | 44:17 | |
| and on earth, | 44:21 | |
| peace among men with whom he is pleased. | 44:23 | |
| When the angels went away from the shepherds, | 44:28 | |
| went away, the angels went away from them into heaven. | 44:30 | |
| The shepherds said to one another, | 44:34 | |
| "let us go over to Bethlehem | 44:36 | |
| and see this thing that has happened, | 44:39 | |
| which the Lord has made known to us." | 44:41 | |
| And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph | 44:45 | |
| and the babe lying in a manger. | 44:49 | |
| When they saw it, | 44:52 | |
| they made known the saying, | 44:53 | |
| which had been told them concerning this child | 44:55 | |
| and all who heard it wondered | 44:59 | |
| at what the shepherds told them. | 45:01 | |
| But Mary kept all these things, | 45:03 | |
| pondering them in her heart. | 45:07 | |
| The shepherds returned glorifying and praising God | 45:09 | |
| for all they had heard and seen | 45:14 | |
| as it had been told to them, Amen. | 45:18 | |
| (soft upbeat music) | 46:31 | |
| (choir sings) | 46:47 | |
| (distant chatter) | 49:35 | |
| North Charlotte, North Carolina, | 49:42 | |
| from his birth to his death, | 49:45 | |
| he was brushed by a fanatical form of fundamentalism. | 49:47 | |
| You might've guessed | 49:53 | |
| that he would have been an irreligious unbelieving man, | 49:53 | |
| but listen to this editorial, | 50:00 | |
| he wrote for the Charlotte news on December 24th, 1937. | 50:01 | |
| As we like to think of it was very quiet | 50:10 | |
| and still in that simple place on that morning. | 50:14 | |
| Only the babe red faced is all newborn are red faced | 50:19 | |
| with his tiny fist press to his mouth, | 50:25 | |
| sleeping in the stone manger. | 50:28 | |
| Only the mother, | 50:31 | |
| she was afterward to be called the mother of God | 50:33 | |
| and the mother of sorrows and the star of the sea | 50:36 | |
| and many other fine and lovely names, | 50:40 | |
| sleeping on the straw with no other glory | 50:43 | |
| about her as yet save the pale the attitude | 50:46 | |
| that lies upon the face of all women | 50:51 | |
| who sleep after giving birth. | 50:54 | |
| Only the man who stood his father to the child, | 50:57 | |
| keeping watch that and no more, | 51:01 | |
| save the cox hailing in the lonely day, | 51:04 | |
| a donkey stamping now and then in a nearby stall, | 51:07 | |
| the hurried sounding footfall of a traveler | 51:12 | |
| belated in these busy times of tax gathering | 51:15 | |
| and the soft rustle of the sleeping pair. | 51:19 | |
| These three alone in the pensive morning | 51:24 | |
| with the mystery of birth and the mystery of life, | 51:28 | |
| which is contained in birth and the mystery of death, | 51:32 | |
| which is foreshadowed in birth. | 51:36 | |
| So we like to think of them. | 51:39 | |
| There are so many facets to the spirit of this day. | 51:43 | |
| This of all days is the day, | 51:47 | |
| which is dedicated to the great simplicities, | 51:50 | |
| which are the great mysteries. | 51:53 | |
| The whole story of Jesus is in some sense, | 51:57 | |
| the story of our passage through those simplicities, | 52:02 | |
| which so exceed understanding | 52:06 | |
| that all folk become as one before them. | 52:09 | |
| This is the day then for the humble heart | 52:14 | |
| and the contemplative mind, | 52:19 | |
| for the renewal of the sense of how strange | 52:21 | |
| and how marvelous and how splendid is the common way we go. | 52:25 | |
| (choir sings) | 52:43 | |
| - | Alan Payton, author of 'Cry the Beloved Country' | 54:32 |
| and of the book instruments of thy peace, | 54:38 | |
| writes, "My Christmas dream, | 54:43 | |
| Bing Crosby made a song famous. | 54:48 | |
| I'm dreaming of a white Christmas. | 54:52 | |
| Well, I'm dreaming of a Christmas too, | 54:55 | |
| but it's not a white one. | 54:58 | |
| It's all mixed up. | 55:00 | |
| That's why some people call me a mixed up kid. | 55:03 | |
| I'd like to bring Christ into our white Christmas. | 55:07 | |
| There are lots of people who want Christ brought back | 55:12 | |
| into Christmas who want urgently to tell people | 55:15 | |
| that Christmas is more than presents | 55:18 | |
| and merriment and a big dinner | 55:21 | |
| and colored lights and elf street. | 55:23 | |
| They want to tell people that Christ is born. | 55:26 | |
| The wonderful, the counselor, | 55:29 | |
| the darling of the world. | 55:32 | |
| I want to tell them that too, | 55:34 | |
| but it's not the presence and the mayor | 55:37 | |
| and the big dinner and the colored lights that were a Mae. | 55:39 | |
| It's the whiteness of it all. | 55:43 | |
| I'd like to get up on a Christmas morning | 55:47 | |
| and go to the parish church | 55:50 | |
| and see all the Christians there, | 55:52 | |
| the rich and the poor, | 55:55 | |
| the mighty, and the humble, | 55:57 | |
| the white and the black, | 55:59 | |
| the householder and the servants | 56:01 | |
| for getting all their prides | 56:03 | |
| and hates and fears in their worship | 56:05 | |
| of the child who is their Lord. | 56:08 | |
| As one grows older, | 56:12 | |
| one is hard to move. | 56:13 | |
| But if I saw that in my parish church, | 56:16 | |
| I weep tears of unspeakable joy. | 56:19 | |
| Language, ah yes. | 56:24 | |
| The language problem. | 56:28 | |
| What's the use of a service that people can understand. | 56:30 | |
| Ah yes, indeed. | 56:34 | |
| Then let's have a service they can all understand. | 56:37 | |
| Let the people respond in any language they like to use. | 56:40 | |
| Say the creed and pray the Lord's prayer | 56:44 | |
| and make their confession in their own languages. | 56:47 | |
| Let them sing in any language they like. | 56:50 | |
| Let the sermon be brief and let it be interpreted. | 56:53 | |
| Let the whole congregation cry in the languages | 56:58 | |
| of the world if need be. | 57:01 | |
| Holy, holy, holy Lord, | 57:03 | |
| God of hosts, | 57:06 | |
| heaven and earth are full of the glory. | 57:07 | |
| Glory be to thee old Lord and glory be to the also Lord, | 57:10 | |
| because at last we are together | 57:16 | |
| because at lasts the cruel arguments | 57:19 | |
| of language difference and race difference, | 57:22 | |
| and culture difference have been transcended | 57:24 | |
| in the love of Christ his for us and ours for him, | 57:28 | |
| then let us pray together. | 57:33 | |
| We do not presume to come to this thy table | 57:35 | |
| and let us go up together and eat together | 57:39 | |
| and drink together. | 57:42 | |
| And for that, | 57:43 | |
| let us be especially thankful. | 57:44 | |
| Then indeed, could we all shout glory be to God | 57:47 | |
| on high and on earth, | 57:50 | |
| peace, goodwill towards men. | 57:52 | |
| Then indeed would that peace of God, | 57:55 | |
| which passes, understanding, | 57:57 | |
| keep our hearts and minds. | 58:00 | |
| And my wife shook me." | 58:02 | |
| "What are you shouting for?" | 58:05 | |
| She asked, "you were shouting glory to God." | 58:07 | |
| "It was Christmas communion in the parish church," I said. | 58:10 | |
| There we were singing and praying | 58:14 | |
| and responding in any language we pleased. | 58:16 | |
| There we were all the colors under the South African sun. | 58:19 | |
| "You must have been dreaming," she said. | 58:23 | |
| God, may it not be dreamed. | 58:30 | |
| May it become reality, Amen. | 58:36 | |
| Oh man. | 58:42 | |
| (orchestra music playing) | 58:50 | |
| (choir sings) | 59:03 | |
| - | Blessed Woman, excellent man. | 1:00:25 |
| Redeem for the doll. | 1:00:31 | |
| The average way that common and gifted natures may believe | 1:00:33 | |
| that their normal vision can walk to perfection. | 1:00:41 | |
| Our next hymn, | 1:00:49 | |
| oh, come all you fateful is numbered 386. | 1:00:50 | |
| Let us rejoice and sing. | 1:00:56 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:01:00 | |
| (choir sings) | 1:01:22 | |
| - | Christ is here on earth. | 1:04:22 |
| (crowd mumbles) | 1:04:25 | |
| They came hurrying from far and wide. | 1:04:28 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 1:04:33 | |
| Hallelujah, hallelujah. | 1:04:35 | |
| Could you remain standing | 1:04:40 | |
| for this reading from the word of God. | 1:04:41 | |
| Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, | 1:04:45 | |
| in the days of Herod the king, | 1:04:50 | |
| behold wise men from the east came to Jerusalem saying, | 1:04:52 | |
| "where is he who has been born king of the Jews, | 1:04:58 | |
| for we have seen his star in the east. | 1:05:06 | |
| And we have come to worship him." | 1:05:09 | |
| When Herod the king heard this, | 1:05:12 | |
| he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him | 1:05:15 | |
| and assembling all the chief priests | 1:05:19 | |
| and describes of the people he inquired of them, | 1:05:21 | |
| where the Christ was to be born. | 1:05:25 | |
| They told him in Bethlehem of Judea | 1:05:28 | |
| for so it is written by the prophet | 1:05:32 | |
| and you oh Bethlehem in the land of Judah | 1:05:34 | |
| are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, | 1:05:38 | |
| for from you shall come a ruler | 1:05:42 | |
| who will govern my people Israel. | 1:05:44 | |
| Then Herod some of the wise men secretly | 1:05:49 | |
| and ascertained from them what time the star appeared. | 1:05:52 | |
| And he sent them to Bethlehem saying, | 1:05:56 | |
| "go and search diligently for the child. | 1:05:59 | |
| And when you have found him, | 1:06:03 | |
| bring me word that I too may come and worship him." | 1:06:04 | |
| When they had heard the king, | 1:06:09 | |
| they went their way and low the star, | 1:06:10 | |
| which they had seen in the east went before them, | 1:06:13 | |
| till it came to rest over the place where the child was. | 1:06:17 | |
| When they saw the star, | 1:06:21 | |
| they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy | 1:06:23 | |
| and going into the house, | 1:06:27 | |
| they saw the child with Mary, his mother, | 1:06:28 | |
| and they fell down and worshiped him. | 1:06:31 | |
| Then opening their treasures. | 1:06:35 | |
| They offered him gifts, | 1:06:37 | |
| gold and frankincense and myrrh. | 1:06:39 | |
| And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod. | 1:06:43 | |
| They departed to their own country by another way, Amen. | 1:06:48 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:06:56 | |
| (choir sings) | 1:07:47 | |
| - | The wise men have arrived at the manger | 1:10:42 |
| and are pondering their journey. | 1:10:47 | |
| Led by the light of an unusual star. | 1:10:51 | |
| We hunted high and low have traveled far for many days, | 1:10:54 | |
| a little group alone with doubts, | 1:10:59 | |
| reproaches, boredom, the unknown. | 1:11:01 | |
| Through stifling, gorgeous over level lakes, | 1:11:08 | |
| Tundras and tense and irresponsive seas. | 1:11:13 | |
| In vacant crowds and humming silences | 1:11:18 | |
| by ruined arches and past modern shops, | 1:11:22 | |
| counting the miles and the absurd mistakes. | 1:11:28 | |
| Oh, here and now our endless journey stops. | 1:11:33 | |
| We never left the place where we were born. | 1:11:38 | |
| I've only lived one day, | 1:11:41 | |
| but every day have walked a thousand miles yet only worn | 1:11:44 | |
| the grass between our work and home away. | 1:11:49 | |
| Lonely we were though never left alone. | 1:11:54 | |
| Solitude, familiar to the poor | 1:11:58 | |
| is feeling that the family next door, | 1:12:00 | |
| the way it walks, talks, eats, | 1:12:03 | |
| dresses, loves and hates is indistinguishable | 1:12:06 | |
| from one's own. | 1:12:10 | |
| Today for the first time, | 1:12:13 | |
| the prison gates have opened. | 1:12:16 | |
| Music and sudden light have interrupted our routine today | 1:12:19 | |
| and swept the fill of habit from our hearts. | 1:12:25 | |
| Oh, here and now, | 1:12:30 | |
| our endless journey starts. | 1:12:33 | |
| Released by law from isolating wrongs. | 1:12:36 | |
| Let us for love unite our various songs, | 1:12:40 | |
| each with our own gift according to our own kind, | 1:12:46 | |
| bringing this child, | 1:12:51 | |
| our bodies and our minds, Amen. | 1:12:53 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:13:07 | |
| (choir sings) | 1:13:26 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:17:27 | |
| (choir sings) | 1:19:02 | |
| - | Following the prayers of Thanksgiving and intercession. | 1:20:10 |
| Our closing him is number 392, | 1:20:14 | |
| joy to the world. | 1:20:18 | |
| Let us pray. | 1:20:20 | |
| Thanks be to God for this blessing Christmas morning, | 1:20:23 | |
| for the gift of thy son who brought light | 1:20:28 | |
| and life and love to us and to all your children. | 1:20:32 | |
| Thanks be to thee for all good gifts of kindness | 1:20:39 | |
| and helpfulness and happiness. | 1:20:42 | |
| Thanks be to thee for the grace and mercy ever with us, | 1:20:46 | |
| never failing. | 1:20:51 | |
| We offer today, oh God, | 1:20:54 | |
| a prayer for those who long for peace in the world | 1:20:55 | |
| and in their hearts. | 1:21:00 | |
| Those who long for hope | 1:21:03 | |
| in the midst of doubt and frustration. | 1:21:05 | |
| Those who seek relief from pain and hurt, | 1:21:09 | |
| those who long for love, | 1:21:13 | |
| long to be able to love themselves, | 1:21:16 | |
| long for love from others and long for love from thee. | 1:21:19 | |
| Help us to receive and to re-share, | 1:21:25 | |
| to share thy love this holy day | 1:21:28 | |
| and all through the year to come. | 1:21:32 | |
| Give to us the joy, our souls, | 1:21:35 | |
| so desperately need and our lives long to experience | 1:21:38 | |
| through Jesus Christ our blessing Lord, Amen. | 1:21:44 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:21:53 | |
| (choir sings) | 1:22:26 | |
| - | And they returned glorifying and praising God. | 1:25:00 |
| for all they had stirred and seen. | 1:25:05 | |
| Christ is the way. | 1:25:08 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 1:25:11 | |
| Christ is the truth. | 1:25:20 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 1:25:23 | |
| Christ is the life. | 1:25:33 | |
| (crowd mumbles) | 1:25:36 | |
| Go now glorifying and praising God | 1:25:44 | |
| for the birth of Jesus, the Christ, Amen. | 1:25:49 | |
| (orchestra music continues) | 1:25:56 |