| Christmas is full of the delightful sounds of the season, from jingle bells to the joyful holiday hymns we hear on the radio and sing in church. Their words are lovely and familiar… sometimes too familiar. It's easy to know all the words and still miss the spirit of what we're singing. But what if we knew how these famous carols came about, what inspired their authors to first write down the words that lead us to reflect on the birth of Jesus and what that means? Traditions like wish lists and making cookies for Santa are relatively new—it's only in the last hundred years that Christmas has shifted to being a holiday focused on presents and parties. For thousands of years, Christmas was a quieter celebration, without an entire season dedicated to it, for most, a day to spend with family and a few weeks on the church calendar where the focus was on Christ coming to earth. But from the very beginning, there were carols to sing in homes, neighborhoods, and churches to tell the story of the nativity. Many of the carols we still sing and hear today go back for hundreds of years, and several of them were involved in fascinating times of history. Whether it's the Civil War origins of a father searching for his prodigal son or the songs that were sung during a brief truce in a war, the incredible backstories of these holiday hymns will change the way you worship this December. As you read the powerful stories of the beginnings of a few of your favorite songs, remember that their messages of hope and healing are just as true for those of us singing them today. The writers of these songs have some incredible stories to share that will lead us to be even more grateful for the joy of the baby born in Bethlehem so long ago. Photo Credit: ©GettyImages Digital Vision. | 
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