On Christmas Eve 1818, the German carol “Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht!” was sung for the very first time in the tiny village of Oberndorf, eight miles north of Salzburg, Austria. The popularity of “Silent Night!” can almost be termed miraculous. There was no celebrity to sing at the world premiere and no mass-communication system to spread the song’s fame. Yet its composer reported that the “simple composition… instantly met with approval.” It has since gone on to become one of the world’s most beloved carols.
We may never know the exact circumstances, but before that Christmas Eve service, the young pastor Joseph Mohr asked organist Franz Gruber to compose a tune to accompany his lyrics, a poem Mohr had written two years earlier. Around 1819, an organ builder from Fugen, named Carl Maraucher, heard about the carol when he was in Oberndorf. He liked the carol so much that he brought “Silent Night!” back with him to his home town, and from there it spread all over the world, reaching American shores for the first time in 1839, when the Rainer singers from Austria performed it in New York City. Its powerful message of heavenly peace has crossed all borders and language barriers, having been translated into over 300 languages. Now, nearly 200 years later, “Silent Night!” is an anchor for Christmas celebrations throughout the world.
Three of the six verses of the carol appear on this tract and reflect Joseph Mohr’s spiritual joy. Oh, that the real meaning of Christmas would grip us this season as it did him!
As you consider the angel’s proclamation: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11), remember that these words are for you, just as much as they were for the shepherds who first heard them. Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem on that silent night signaled the beginning of His earthly mission to save us from our sins. This mission included His sacrificial death on the cross, His glorious resurrection on Easter morning, and His ascension into heaven forty days later to reign as the eternal King of kings and Lord of lords. And the reason for His coming to earth? Love. He loved us that much! “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
If you do not know the peace of a personal relationship with the One whom “Silent Night!” praises, the Christ of Christmas, you can open your heart right now, wherever you are, and experience that peace firsthand. Simply pray:
“Dear Jesus, I understand and believe that You came to earth, died on the cross, and rose again, all out of love for me. Please forgive my sins, take control of my life, and be my Savior forever.”
That decision will make this Christmas one you’ll never forget.
Silent night! Holy night!
All is calm, all is bright
’Round yon virgin mother and Child,
Holy Infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace!
Sleep in heavenly peace!
Silent night! Holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight!
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heav’nly hosts sing, “Alleluia!”
Christ the Savior is born!
Christ the Savior is born!
Silent night! Holy night!
Son of God, love’s pure light!
Radiant beams from Thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!
The cover picture (courtesy of the Tourist Office of Oberndorf) is the original Silent Night Memorial Chapel in Oberndorf, Austria, erected on the very place where Mohr and Gruber sang this beautiful Christmas hymn for the very first time.