On Christmas Day, a friend of mine had an interesting post on Facebook that got me thinking. He talked about what different people call this season, what it’s all about to them and the various politically correct greetings. He alluded to Shakespeare’s line:
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.”
He went on to say that no matter what you call this season, in reality it is about the birth of Jesus. Yeah, yeah, I know about all this Druid stuff and everything, but like it or not, it’s about Him.
It reminded me of the carol I’m studying on this Fourth Day of Christmas, “Lo! How a Rose E’er Blooming.” Now, this one goes way back. The first time it showed up in print was in the 1599 Speyer Hymnal. The version we use today was harmonized by Michael Praetorius in 1609. It is a haunting melody that has a free rhythm in a Gregorian chant style.
The original had 19 verses and a few more have been added over the years. Today, we typically reduce them to five. Of these, verses 1, 2 and 4 are from the original.
The song showed up in the 1970 film, Love Story and was the recurring theme in the 2009 movie, The Time Traveler’s Wife.
1 Lo, how a rose e’er blooming
from tender stem hath sprung,
of Jesse’s lineage coming,
as men of old have sung.
It came, a floweret bright,
amid the cold of winter,
when half-spent was the night.2 Isaiah ’twas foretold it,
the rose I have in mind;
with Mary we behold it,
the virgin mother kind.
To show God’s love aright,
she bore to men a Savior,
when half-spent was the night.3 The shepherds heard the story,
proclaimed by angels bright,
how Christ, the Lord of glory,
was born on earth this night.
To Bethlehem they sped
and in the manger found him,
as angel heralds said.4 This flow’r, whose fragrance tender
with sweetness fills the air,
dispels with glorious splendor
the darkness ev’rywhere.
True man, yet very God,
from sin and death he saves us,
and lightens ev’ry load.5 O Savior, child of Mary,
who felt our human woe;
O Savior, King of glory,
who dost our weakness know,
bring us at length, we pray,
to the bright courts of heaven
and to the endless day.
Now, back to our original discussion about Christmas, Happy Holidays or whatever one wishes to call it. The bottom line is Christmas is about Christ. We date our modern calendars from this event and it was a moment that literally split history in two. So, call it what you may, a rose is still a rose and Christmas is still and always will be about the coming of the Christ child.
For me, this is freeing. It is not something that I need to use to pound on the heads of unbelievers. But rather a truth that, whether recognized, belittled or ignored, still remains.
You may enjoy listening to a classical guitar rendition of this song.