Category: Advent & Christmas
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A New Song Sounded in the Night
The original text for THE LINDEN TREE CAROL describes the angel Gabriel bringing news to Mary of Nazareth and then carrying her response back to a company of angels. In this new text, good news takes a journey from angels to shepherds and then out into the world. This familiar story from the gospel of Luke…
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Hark How the Heralds
This text celebrates all the messengers of Advent. It could be used as a Call to Worship or Candle Lighting song during the weeks of Advent and Christmas, with one or more stanzas used each week. It was inspired by the Advent series “Hark! Heralding of our Faith” developed by the liturgical community “This is…
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Praise God Who Lives within You
One of my favorite moments in scripture is when Mary of Nazareth rushes to her kinswoman Elizabeth and the two of them witness and affirm for one another the marvelous things that God is doing in their lives. I was startled to realize how few hymn texts there are to mark this momentous event. This…
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God, Be With Your Weary People
Every year during Advent, we are invited to anticipate Jesus’ arrival among us with joy. This text uses imagery found in Advent scriptures, asking God to come meet our urgent needs and help awaken our hope. View this hymn on GIA Unbound. The text is set to the familiar tune HYFRYDOL and also to Sally…
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A Word Went Out to Mary
I have always loved the gentle beauty of both the text and tune of “Lo, How a Rose.” More recently, I discovered that there was another set of words written to the same tune, “A Great and Mighty Wonder,” which emphasizes the high and holy nature of the child who arrives among us. Here I reference both…
Hannah C Brown 