I heard the bells on Christmas Day.
Their old, familiar carols play.
And wild and sweet
The words repeat.
Of peace on earth, goodwill to men!
Most know that stanza by heart, the opening lines of the old poem Christmas Bells, by the famous 19th-century American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
I heard the bells on Christmas Day...
The ringing of bells. Though not mentioned in the nativity accounts, I find it amusing how they tie to the Christmas story. Like Longfellow, I too am drawn into deeper thought upon hearing the ringing of bells.
Each summer was spent at Durley Camp in Greenville, the days spent racing all over the campground with my camp friends, lining up early for dinner, and playing lots of four-square and basketball. But each day at 7 p.m., the old bell by the tabernacle was rung, four or five loud chimes echoing across the campground, impossible to ignore. It is time for church. The two hundred or so folks would convene then for the evening service, beckoned by the bell, a signal to the entire campground that something important was to begin.
There were no church Christmas bells on that first night in Bethlehem, as God took on human flesh and entered into the world for the most glorious rescue mission in an (at least from our mortal eyes) unceremonious and unbefitting fashion.
But as I drive home each night after work and look to the dark evening sky, listening to John Williams’ rendition of “O Holy Night” for the 100th time, my mind begins to paint a vivid image: A legion of heavenly hosts, angelic beings rolling back the sky to reveal a great orchestra, all proclaiming the good and glorious news of the birth of Christ to the quite ordinary shepherds that lay watching in the fields that night. “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
I imagine there were the first Christmas bells that night, ringing in pure beauty, a type of praise not capable of being defined by human language but only through the natural notes that God has given us, drawing holy chills down my spine and joyful tears to my eyes.
I heard the bells on Christmas Day...
While it was a glorious occasion that first night the Christmas bells rang, they have continued to ring even in the broken and weary world of evil and horrors. Longfellow was no stranger to pain. He wrote the poem on Christmas Day, 1863, amidst the bloody gore of the American Civil War, a country that over his life had grown divided by spite and wickedness. He had paid a high price for the divide as well; his eldest son had been wounded severely in battle, plunging the great poet into despair.
And in despair, I bowed my head;
‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said;
‘For hate is strong and mocks the song.
Of peace on earth, goodwill to men!’
Yet even then, the Christmas bells still rang out in song. Even in immense pain and despair, the bells continue on. For many, the tolling can feel like the final knell of defeat, the pain too great, the body too weary to stand against the relentless blows of the enemy.
But because of the Christmas bells, that is thankfully not the case. Rather, the bells signify the beginning of the last lap of the race. There is only a bit further to press on. Yes, the body is weary, and yes, the mind screams to give up, and yes, the world expects you to collapse. But because of the Christmas bells, the runner even then quickens his pace, defies the order of the fallen world, and presses on toward the finish line, eyes fixed on the One who ran before us, who endured the cross for the joy set before Him, and who now stands waiting at the finish line, arms open wide.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail.
With peace on earth, goodwill to men.
With that, suddenly, the tune turns to joyous wedding bells. The Christ and the church, His bride, united by the sacrifice on the cross. The great rescue mission was a success; the lost have been found and drawn once more into the presence of their Creator. All creation sings praises; the bells ring on forever, and the Lord Jesus Christ, Lord of glory, Wonderful Counselor, King of kings, and Prince of Peace, reigns for eternity. And you and I, the church, know no more pain, no more despair, and no more weariness, all replaced by the wonderful glory of the risen and reigning Christ, and we will sing His praises forever and evermore...
Yes, I can hear those Christmas bells. Do you?
