Christmas Song #3 – Index and Resources

I hope you’ve enjoyed our exploration of It Came Upon The Midnight Clear! This is an index of all the posts. Below that, I’ve included some resources for further study.

• Christmas Song #3 – And it’s a strange one. – The introduction to the new series, with links to the two previous ones.
• Christmas Song #3 – It Came Upon The Midnight Clear – The first two verses give us the background for the message of the carol. Also, notes on the religion of its author.
• Christmas Song #3 – “Two thousand years of wrong” – The third stanza, the end of war, and Psalm 46.
• Christmas Song #3 – What Only Christians Can Do At Christmas – The fourth stanza, and the oppressed listen to the angel’s song.
• Christmas Song #3 – “The Age of Gold” – The angels’ song and the path to the “age of gold”. Also, the surprising omission in this carol.

Further Resources

A few other links to check out:

• The Cyber Hymnal – lyrics, pictures of the authors, alternate tunes and languages can be found here.
• The Hymns and Carols of Christmas – there’s a lot about the history of the text here. Some authors have attempted to make some verses more personal, or more Christ-centred.
• WordWise Hymns – My Dad wrote some articles on this carol and its author, including It Came Upon the Midnight Clear (thoughts on the lyrics), and Today in 1810 – Edmund Sears Born (more on Sears’ religion, and another carol that he wrote).
• The Angel’s Song – It Came Upon the Midnight Clear – detailed information on Sears’ life, and more on the controversy about just how “Christian” this carol is.
• Internet Archive – some old recordings and printings of this carol.