Merry Christmas! (Yes, I dared to say that)

Clergy are being told to give context of Christmas carols ‘so diverse communities feel welcome’ and the words ‘won’t add further confusion or tension’ due to the Israel-Hamas War.'

It’s Christmas Eve! Tonight, I will listen to Handel’s Messiah and some other older songs that celebrate the birth of Jesus. I have included the words of some of those songs below.

You can listen to me read this essay here:

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Church of England bishops claim Christmas carols saying Jesus is the ‘true Messiah’ are ‘problematic’.

Across Britain (I really can’t call it “Great” Britain anymore) clergy are being advised that such songs will cause offense, due to the war between Israel and Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis and Iran.

Cause offense to whom?

Could it be Jews? They don’t believe Jesus is the Messiah. Yet I’ve never seen a news story claiming Christians need to tone down the Christmas songs because Jews find it offensive. If you have, please tell me.

We all know who might find it offensive. It’s Muslims. Of course, if you talk to Muslims, they will assure you that they revere Jesus, the same as any prophet. But, for Christians, Jesus isn’t the same as any prophet. He is the Messiah, just as these songs proclaim. Jesus as Messiah is the very essence of Christianity. Without it, Christianity ceases to exist.

But isn’t that the plan? Laying all the blame on Muslims is just the latest excuse for something far more nefarious.

Imagine if Handel’s Messiah became too “problematic” and the words needed to be changed, as they have done to so many books. Remember, for example, when 6 Dr. Seuss books were banned due to “racially insensitive imagery”.

That ban had nothing to do with Muslims. It had to do with other “woke” objections that started long before the Islamic invasion of the West. This attack on true Christianity has been building for a long time. Everything that has to do with Jesus must either be perverted or completely erased. In every way. Everywhere.

Here are some of the offensive words in The Messiah, which are taken straight from the Book of Revelation in the Bible:

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory and blessing."

"Blessing and honour, glory and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever."

These words are more than offensive, they are downright dangerous. Not only to Muslims, but to the Tech Gods and the billionaires, to the communists and the fascists, to the “woke” arm on the left and on the right who seek to dethrone God and put themselves in his place.

This war on Jesus—and also on Jews—is so much bigger than not offending Muslims. It is a war between good and evil. We see evidence of it in the physical world with the war in the Middle East, with armies gathering throughout the entire world. But more importantly, it is a war being waged in the spiritual realm between God and Satan.

When I lived between London and Yugoslavia in the 1980s, we would sometimes spend Christmas at our village house in Zirovnica. This was in what is now Slovenia, near one of my favorite places on earth, Lake Bled.

There was no Christmas in communist Yugoslavia. In a way, though, I really loved spending Christmas in that little village without the commercialism of Western countries. There was no pressure, no constant ads to buy useless stuff. No kids screaming for a new toy. No disgruntled crowds pushing their way around department stores. There were no gaudy Christmas lights or celebrations.

Christmas morning dawned like any other. Quiet and covered with snow. People went to work as usual. There were no Christmas carols, no churches performing Handel’s Messiah. No one went to church, except the elderly who weren’t afraid of losing their jobs or their status in society. Many people worshiped in secret in their homes.

In Zirovnica, I was brought back to the basics of life. There was no central heating. If I wanted to be warm, I had to go to the barn and gather coal and chop wood for the ancient tile stoves. My California blood was always cold, and I would cart three buckets of fuel up to my room to stoke the fire. My mother-in-law would come in (she didn’t know about knocking) and shake her head in disapproval at my extravagance.

If I wanted to take a shower, I had to make a fire under the small water heater in the one tiny bathroom and wash quickly before the hot water ran out.

At first, it was a mystery to me where to throw my trash. But I learned that nothing was wasted. Everything was either used for fuel or fed to the chickens. Under the kitchen sink, my mother-in-law had pots with various fermenting substances that went either on the compost pile or to the chickens. Even the eggshells were crushed to fed back to the animals.

I learned so much from living that simple life. When spring came and I saw the first flowers, I was ecstatic. One of my favorite things to do was to go down to the village store and buy a fresh baked cinnamon bun, come home and make a coffee and sit on the balcony, soaking up the sun as it came over the high mountains behind the house.

Every season has its beauty. But Christmas was special. Having no material distractions meant I could focus on its true meaning. Jesus, born in a manger, the Light come into a world of darkness. Immediately after Jesus’ birth, the spiritual battle grew intense. His parents fled with him to Egypt as Herod, king of Judea, ordered the slaughter of all male children who were two years old and younger. This horrific event isn’t much talked about at Christmas, but it should be. A desperate effort by Satan to ensure that Jesus, born of Jewish lineage, did not live.

But Jesus did live. He came into this world with one purpose and one purpose alone: to die on a cross for our sins and to rise again so we could be saved. As a follower of Jesus, it’s important to me, not just to celebrate his birth but to remember why he was born and to thank him with all my heart for his love and sacrifice.

So, let’s take a look at the words of some of these old songs that are not only offensive to Muslims but that threaten Satan himself.

O Holy Night by Placide Cappeau (1847)

I start with one of my favorites. So beautiful! You can listen to it here.

Oh, holy night, the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees, oh, hear the angel voices!
Oh, night divine, oh, night when Christ was born!
Oh, night divine, oh, night, oh, night divine!

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen by an Unknown Author (18th Century)

God rest you merry, gentlemen / Let nothing you dismay,
For Jesus Christ our Savior / Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s pow’r /When we were gone astray.

Refrain:
Oh, tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy / Oh, tidings of comfort and joy.

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing by Charles Wesley (1739)

Hark! The herald angels sing / “Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild / God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise / Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’angelic host proclaim, “Christ is born in Bethlehem!”

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear by Edmund Sears (1849)

It came upon the midnight clear / That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth / To touch their harps of gold;
“Peace on the earth, good will to men / From Heav’n’s all-gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay / To hear the angels sing.

Joy To the World by Isaac Watts (1719)

Joy to the world, the Lord is come! / Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room / And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n and nature sing / And heav’n, and heav’n, and nature sing.

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silent paraphrased by Gerard Moultrie (1864)

Let all mortal flesh keep silence / And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly-minded / For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth /Our full homage to demand.

O Come, All Ye Faithful by John F. Wade (1843)

Oh, come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant / Oh, come ye, oh, come ye, to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him, born the King of angels

Refrain:
Oh, come, let us adore Him, oh, come, let us adore Him / Oh, come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel by an Unknown Author, translated by John M. Neale (1851)

O come, O come, Emmanuel / And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here / Until the Son of God appear

Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel / Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O Little Town of Bethlehem by Phillips Brooks (1867)

O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.
Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep their watch of wond’ring love.
O morning stars, together proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King, and peace to men on earth!

What Child Is This? by William C. Dix (1865)

What Child is this who, laid to rest / On Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet / While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King / Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
Haste, haste to bring Him laud / The Babe, the Son of Mary.

Reading these words, one after the other, they are so beautiful, so powerful, how is it possible in our Western world that they are being denounced as “offensive”.

These songs repeat often “Christ is King”. I must add that yes, Jesus is King, but he is not the king of the “Christ is King” movement promoted by Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson and others like them. Anti-Israel Christian Nationalists are not going to “take over the world for Jesus”. What they really want is more power for themselves, which is no different from the Islamic desire for a worldwide Caliphate. This is truly a disturbing development in the West.

Jesus said in John 18:36: “My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight…”

God has given this earth over to Satan. As is said in Job 9:24: The earth is given into the hand of the wicked.

Jesus is the king of our hearts, and His Kingdom is not of this world. He has told us to “Take up the cross and follow him”, not gain riches and power in this world. In these dark days when truth is being twisted into ever more acceptable lies, we need to remember that.

So, this evening, perhaps sit down with your family and listen to some of these wonderful songs. Perhaps listen by candlelight. Say a prayer together, thanking Jesus for all he has done for us. And pray for courage in the coming year to speak out and not be silent.

Stand with Israel. Stand with God’s People, the Jews. Stand on the firm foundation of your faith and refuse to be shaken. Proclaim the truth from the rooftops.

Here’s the full production of Handel’s Messiah. Yes, it’s over two hours, but listen as you wish.

And here is one hour of beautiful Anglican carols.

God bless you all this Christmas.