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I remember when I was a boy that there was a
part of town to which most young carollers didn't go simply because
it was a little too far out of town and involved climbing a steep hill.
It was also the better end of town so the houses all stood apart and
were approached by climbing steep driveways. 'In the bleak mid-winter'
it proved a bit of a challenge and most of my friends stayed within
the confines of the town centre where the houses were terraced, more
ground was covered in less time, and the warm hearth and home was quick
and easy to get to.
However, a few of us were made of sterner stuff and braved the climb
and the cold and the long walks from house to house to bring Christmas
cheer to these poor, neglected souls - and they were very grateful.
Which is why, of course, we did it. You could collect more money for
singing in a half dozen of these houses than others could in calling
at whole terraces in the middle of town. There was, however, one other
condition and that was that these discerning people wanted something
more for their money.
It wasn't enough to sing 'We wish you a merry Xmas'. You had to sing
more than one verse of more than one carol, otherwise their disappointment
was reflected in the reward you received. In one house, I remember,
there was a man in a wheelchair who couldn't come to the door. Here
we were invited in by his family to sing especially for him. On these
occasions the money somehow paled to insignificance, as we instinctively
knew that this meant a lot more to him than a couple of kids struggling
through 'Silent Night, Holy Night'. We sang our hearts out - and got
our due reward anyway.
We got carol singers this year and - weeeell! One lad hid behind the
bush in the garden and generously allowed his two mates to sing:
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the
way,
Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh - HEY!
Slay being the operative word. I gave them money because they made me
laugh! But what do they teach them in school these days?
The carol was originally a secular music genre and, in the fine tradition
of Christian music, it was adopted in the fourteenth century, during
the religious revival begun by Francis of Asissi. As William Booth remarked,
"Why should the devil have all the best music?" Carols originally celebrated
good news throughout the Christian year, including Easter, but now are
confined to Christmas.
The one rule about the carol was that it should always have a cheerful
matter as its subject and this has been carried through into its Christian
form. An old Sussex carol declares:
"On Christmas night all Christians sing,
to hear the news the angels bring"
Carols get a lot of bad press, especially amongst the more dour and
unhappy in society. In England after about 1647 during the Commonwealth
they fell upon evil times because of the disapproval of the ("Whatever
it is we're against it") Puritans and even with the return of the monarchy
they remained unpopular. They eventually came back into vogue in the
19th Century through various collections of folk songs and traditions
and are now an integral part of Christian worship again.
There is much talk about whether Britain is a Christian country and
for a long time I followed the popular view that if it ever it was it
is no longer. However, considering the rich Christian traditions we
have I think Britain is a Christian country but this is not currently
a Christian generation.
The carollers at my door go to show how the rising generation is being
robbed of some tremendous traditions that were once taken for granted
and that educated even the non-churchgoer like me. These things were
not just a part of a religious tradition practised by a few devout and
pious people but were an integral part of what made the society in which
we lived and which we passed on to the coming generation. If we lose
these things we lose what has made us what we are and what may yet make
us better than we might be.
Enjoy your Christmas and don't shrink from passing on the best of what
is a rich and colourful Christian tradition and, if your brave enough,
stand at the door and, like me, make those carollers sing at least two
songs and at least one about Jesus. I had to earn my Christmas box and so should they.
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