Here is All Aright

 A Christmas Carol by G. K. Chesterton has always been one of my favourite Christmas poems. It is simple enough, but has some lovely imagery, and the lines "and all the flowers looked up and Him, and all the stars looked down." tugs on my heart as few other things do. I was absolutely delighted to discover that it has been put to music by a traditional Catholic composer. You should go to One Peter Five to read the lyrics, and find out a wee bit more about it. (very wee-- humble, the folks in the making of it seem to be. I gather that it is something of a labour of love, and that the singers are Catholic musicians volunteering to make beautiful things in a dark time. But there is not much actually about the making of this that I can find.) 

The Flight into Egypt.

 Today is the Feast of the Holy Innocents, and it seems fitting to share this haunting old irish carol, An Teicheadh Go hEigipt (The Flight into Egypt) sung by Nóirín Ní Riain & the Monks of Glenstal Abbey. The translation is included in the description-- and yes, it inaccurately depicts the angel speaking to Mary, rather than St. Joseph, but the tune, and the imagery are very beautiful:

Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning

 I first came across this very American sounding carol last year, and liked it well. For some reason, it has been stuck in my head for the last couple weeks... Much to my surprise, it is not originally an American carol, but an English one, and it is slightly older than I would have pegged it: 1811, rather than mid 1800s. Hymns and Carols of Christmas has a write up on it, after the lyrics. 

On the Second Day of Christmas.....

 ..... I discovered a new song. I do not believe that this is meant specifically to be a Christmas song, though it is from Andrea Bocelli's Christmas concert in Assisi. It is composed by Riz Ortolani, an Italian film composer, and (judging from the notes provided by Senore Bocelli) this particular song appears to be from the movie Brother Sun and Sister Moon.* In spite of both of these facts, it seems a good song to share with everyone on this, the feast day of the first martyr, the great St. Stephen:

*A movie I have not seen, nor intend to see, understanding that it is gravely deficient from a Catholic point of view, and makes poor St. Francis out to be something along the lines of a hippie. Why exactly, people have to devalue the knightly heroism of St. Francis by turning him in to a flower child is beyond me, but it is one of those odd and niggling things that never seems to entirely go away. 

Merry Christmas

It is late in the day to be posting, and, as I have made rather merry (as Bob Cratchit would say) with my family upon this most blessed day, also rather late in the day to be thinking up deep and insightful things to say. I shall, therefore, simply post this lovely Christmas song, sung by Nat King Cole: