1. Introduction: Chaplain
Welcome to our Annual Carol Service. This is one of my favourite days each year as it is
a great opportunity to see exactly who we are , it is amazing to be up here and see the
entire school community gathered in the one space and for me it is a great day for
really entering into the Christmas spirit and getting that Christmassy feeling that I
love. Our celebration today is all about the spirit of Christmas. All you need to do is sit
back relax, join in with the carols that you know and support your fellow students as
they present us with this years carol service.
2. Tallaght Youth Band: Adeste Fideles
3. Opening Prayer
We gather together today to hear with joy the message brought to the world through
the birth of a child over 2000 years ago. We shall journey in heart and mind to
Bethlehem, to reflect on the nativity story, to try and really hear the Christmas story
as if for the first time, and consider how we can bring the Christmas message of love
and peace to life in today’s world. We will listen to some well known carols and maybe
even sing along! And we shall also pray: for peace on earth, for fellowship among all
the peoples of the world, for care for the poor and needy, for our families and our
communities.
Today, as we gather for our annual carol service we ask Gods blessing on each of us.
Free us from any worry or distress that we may have and help us to welcome the light
of Christ into our lives, a light that gives us the gift of hope. May hope fill our hearts,
our minds and our homes.
We ask this through Christ Your Son, Amen
4. The Invitation: O Come All Ye Faithful
This carol is believed to have been written in 1743 in France by a Roman Catholic
Layman called John Wade. Originally written in Latin and called Adeste Fideles, the
carol was not translated into English for almost 100 years. The original version had just
4 verses and this is the one most frequently used today although there are 38 versions
on record. It is based on the account of the birth of Jesus found in Luke’s gospel.
The carol is an invitation to step into the nativity story, to make our journey of the
imagination to be there in the Bethlehem stable, and to join with the others who have
already travelled to this place. This carol goes straight to the heart of why Christmas is
so special to Christians across the world, it is filled with statements which sum up
many of the beliefs said in the Creed.
O Come, all ye faithful strikes a note of pure celebration which is why like today it is
often used as the opening song to set the scene for the whole carol service. The chorus
of “O come let us adore him’ is not just for the one day of Christmas or the one event
of the baby in the manger, but it is for all people, on all places and at all times.
5. Choir: O Come All Ye Faithful
6. Movie: Christmas In A Nutshell (found online)
7. Link
It’s what we all want, what we all need, what we all desire. HOPE
We hope for a brighter day, a better world,
We search for hope, grasp for hope,
Yet it seems so difficult to find
At the heart of the Christmas story is hope and that hope comes in the shape of a baby.
Beyond the puke and the dirty nappies and the crying what is it that a baby represents.
We look at a baby and see not just a new life but a future of hope, we see dreams to
be realized, a life to be lived.
And on that first Christmas night the feelings of those gathered in the manger were no
different than any modern parent or vistor. They looked upon the baby Jesus and they
were filled with hope.
Our next carol takes us to the manger and that hopeful scene.
Introducing this carol is __________________
8. Stars and Salvation: Away in a Manger
No Christmas carol service is ever complete without this carol, indeed many of us
remember it as one of the first Christmas carols we sang ourselves.
The first 2 verses of Away in a Manger were first published in 1885 in an American
Lutheran Sunday School book. This created the misconception that the words were
written by Martin Luther when in fact the original author remains unknown. The tune
was a well known melody called the ‘Cradle Song’ which gives the carol the feel of a
lullaby. The carol ends with a prayer of blessing “Bless all of the children”
9. Choir Sing: Away In A Manger
10. Link
This carol paints a simple picture of a baby trying to sleep and being lulled by the
sounds that are around him. It is easy to forget the simplicity of the Christmas story,
not only is it at odds with the commercial holiday that is Christmas but it can also
seem far removed from the rituals and actions of the Church itself. But let us pause
this morning and remind ourselves what we are celebrating. Birth is something we
have all experienced but thankfully do not remember, the miracle of birth, of life, the
miracle that each of us are is celebrated in the Christmas story and the in the birth of
Jesus.
As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus we ask Gods blessing on everyone
gathered here today. Open our hearts to the good news that this birth represents and
help us to welcome the light of Christ into our lives, a light that gives us the gift of
joy.
May this joy fill our heart, our mind and our home.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen
Our next carol is another traditional favourite and captures the spirit of welcome that
plays a part in the Christmas story, and to introduce it I now invite ____________
11.
Choir Sing: The First Nowell
12.
Outside In: The First Nowell
Nowell is the French word for Christmas, which suggests that the word Nowell had
Norman origins. Some scholars trace its roots back to the Latin for birthday, the
medieval English word for news and the French/German words for new and light.
It is perhaps no surprise therefore that the original author remains a mystery but they
may have lived as far back as the 13th century.
This carol invites us to focus on the outsiders who come to visit the baby Jesus.
Christmas with its good news comes first to the shepherds on the cold hillside, they are
the unexpected witnesses and the faraway Wiseman. Outsiders are drawn to Jesus, his
birth attracts a lot of interest, we sing Nowell, Christmas news and it is indeed
headline stuff, after all here we are still celebrating it today. The birth of a baby is a
great event a great leveler. Shepherds stand beside wealthy Wiseman from afar united
by the birth of Jesus. By inviting outsiders in, God turns everything inside out.
13.
Choir Repeat Refrain x2
14.
Link
Are we willing to enter into the spirit of Christmas that involves welcoming and
including others? Are we willing to be like a baby and view the world and people
through eyes that are not prejudiced. A baby does not see skin colour, gender, age,
sexual orientation, race or creed. The Christmas story celebrates this and throughout
his life everything he did showed us that Jesus had the unprejudiced eyes of a baby.
Jesus was born into the world to bring the good news to all.
Our next carol is about the gift of kindness and will be introduced by ______________
15.
The Gift of Kindness: Good King Wenceslas
How on earth did this carol end up in any collection of must sing favorites at Christmas?
It isn’t about the Christmas story and it doesn’t even mention Jesus. This carol is based
on a legend from the Czech Republic and its about a king born some eight centuries
after the Baby Jesus but its message of generosity captures an important aspect of
what Christmas means for many people.
We hear a story from the life of Wenceslas, of a time when he showed kindness to a
poor labourer who he spotted gathering wood in the bitter cold on St. Stephens’s day.
Moved by what he saw he set out to take a Christmas box of food and drink to this man
accompanied by his page, who in turn learns from his example how to care for others.
This carol reminds us that at the heart of Christmas is a spirit of generosity and
kindness. It is a theme picked up my many charities at this time of the year, whose
appeals urge us not to forget others in our headlong rush to spend, spend, spend. This
carols message allows us to see Christmas as a time to remember the pleasure of giving
to others as opposed to simply receiving. However giving isn’t always that easy and
some f the challenges are captured in the following short sketch as King Wenceslas is
interviewed about his St. Stephens Day kindness.
16.
Choir Sing: Good King Wenceslas
17.
Our Donations
In our school we use the carol service as an opportunity to highlight some of the
charitable activities that happen throughout the term.
18.
Choir Sing: Jesus Is Here
19.
Link: Nativity Story
Another aspect of the Christmas story is love, the love of a young couple Mary and
Joseph who become parents in extraordinary circumstances. (brief nativity)
Joseph trusted, he had faith, he loved Mary. This is also an important element of the
Christmas story.
20.
Movie: Social Network Christmas (found online)
21.
Our Christmas Wishes and Prayers
Intercessions
We pray for all families who are expecting the birth of a baby at this time. May
these new born children bring much joy and many blessings to these families.
Lord Hear Us
ALL: Lord Graciously Hear Us
Christ was born among the poor of this world. We pray today for all who are in
need that they may experience kindness and generosity this Christmas.
Lord Hear Us
ALL: Lord Graciously Hear Us
At the birth of Jesus the angels proclaimed peace on earth. Today, we pray for
peace in our hearts, in our families, in our country and in our world.
Lord Hear Us
ALL: Lord Graciously Hear Us
Help us to make good choices so that, through our actions, the world will be a
better place.
Lord Hear Us. All: Lord Graciously Hear Us
That this Christmas is a time of peace and happiness for each member of our school
community and their families.
Lord Hear Us. All: Lord Graciously Hear Us
Faithful God, we remember today all those who are mourning the loss of a family
member or friend. May they experience your healing grace during this Christmas
season.
Lord Hear Us. All: Lord Graciously Hear Us
Pray for 1st Years and 6th Years
On this Advent Day we turn to you in prayer. As we prepare to celebrate the birth of
your Son, we ask your blessing on each of us. Help us to welcome your light into our
lives, a light that gives us the gift of love. You showed us the greatness of you love in
Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us. May love fill our hearts, our minds and our homes this
Christmas. We ask this through Christ Our Lord.Amen
22.
Chaplain: Our Father
Our final carol this today is another well known Christmas favourite. ______________
will now tell us a little about it.
23.
Redeeming Grace: Silent Night
There is a legend that has grown up alongside our next carol ‘Silent Night’. It tells of
an Austrian parish priest who on Christmas Eve discovered to his horror that the
bellows of the church organ had been nibbled by mice. No church organ meant no
music, disaster. The story goes that he then remembered a poem he had written some
time before that, a simple poem perhaps too simple for a big event such as Christmas
Eve Mass. Hours later, with the help of a guitar-playing friend a simple melody was
written in time for the Christmas mass. The day was saved and arguably the most
famous of all carols was born. The legend continues that the carol was lost and all but
forgotten until a workman repairing the church organ discovered its manuscript in
1825.
The carol paints a picture of a moment of stillness and silence at the manger of the
newborn baby. It is as if nothing else exists: even Joseph isn’t included. There are no
animals, nothing in the first verse except Mary and Jesus, a mother and her baby in a
pool of light, which seems to be a circle of peace and protection letting them sleep
within it.
24.
Choir Sing: Silent Night
25.
Final Link
Loving God, as our time of prayer comes to a close we ask you to be with us throughout
this Advent and Christmas season and to help us to be people who bring more light than
darkness into this world. Help us to “give something back” to our families and
communities this Christmas season, and to remember the importance of having a
generous heart. Bless those gathered here today and may the hope, peace, joy and
love of Christ be with you and your loved ones this Christmas.
We ask all these things in the name of Jesus who is our light and lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
26.
Principal