O Holy Night

Matt Gilman and Influence Music perform “O Holy Night,” the nineteenth-century carol that traces back to a French poem and a melody by Adolphe Adam. The opening lines describe a night with stars brightly shining, the night of the Savior's birth, after the world had long lain in sin and error.

The text says that when Jesus appeared the soul felt its worth, and it calls this a thrill of hope that makes the weary world rejoice at a new, glorious morning. The refrain tells listeners to fall on their knees and hear the voices of angels, naming it a night divine when Christ was born. A later verse says that Jesus taught us to love one another, that his law is love and his gospel is peace, and that he will break chains, since the slave is our brother, so that in his name all oppression shall cease. The final lines raise sweet hymns of joy in thankful chorus, ask that everything within praise his holy name, and name Christ the Lord, whom we will praise forever. Gilman's version keeps the carol's wide melody and adds a modern worship band sound. It is a fitting piece for a Christmas Eve service and also for a personal time of reflection on why the birth of Christ is described as the end of an old darkness.

The angel's good news is Luke 2:10-11. Christ setting captives free is Galatians 5:1, and every knee bowing is Philippians 2:10-11.