On the fifth day of Christmas

…we had a little sing-song.

Actually round here the singing started a month or so ago, with a peak on Christmas Eve at an old school Carol Service in Hampstead. The church was packed with kids and Mums and Dads and sulky teenagers (who wanted to be there but at the same time wanted to be anywhere else on this earth but with their parents and younger siblings). But the enthusiasm of the congregation (note not a passive audience, like too many church services) was infectious and everyone joined in (often in ways and at times that the patient vicar would rather us not)

And then young James (12) pointed out how odd the words are to the the carol we were singing (“We three kings…”). It occured to me that I’d never really thought about the words to this one (even though I’d sung it hundreds of times as a child). In fact, as I sung it, I recalled that I’d always imagined it was about Kings of “orian Tar” (still not sure what that meant/s).

Have a look at the words of the carol below: the first verse sets the scene (3 wisemen on their way from somewhere over there, following the star), the second verse is about the gift of golds for kingship, the third about franckinscencebut the fourth is all really unseasonably gloomy (myrrh for the tomb to come).

In between each verse and irrespective of the verse just sung, there’s a rollicking old chorus about following the star which sounds very…um…rustic! . More public house than “no room at the inn”. And 7 and 8 year olds love it just as much.

We three kings of Orient are
Bearing gifts we traverse afar
Field and fountain, moor and mountain
Following yonder star

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to thy Perfect Light

Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King forever, ceasing never
Over us all to rein

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to Thy perfect light

Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Pray’r and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to Thy perfect light

Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes of life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone-cold tomb

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to Thy perfect light

Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Alleluia, Alleluia
Earth to heav’n replies

O Star of wonder, star of night
Star with royal beauty bright
Westward leading, still proceeding
Guide us to Thy perfect light

Rev John Henry Hopkins

All of which served to highlight for me the relative importance in our religious rituals of singing (together) and the words sung: are Christmas carols more social object than message delivery systems?

How comfortable is the Church with its use of Enthusiasm Marketing?

Or do both Marketing and religious practitioners think differently about what they do to propagate their Faith from how it really works?