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| Another Christmas Story - The Birthday of Christ,
1870! 1980? On Christmas Eve in the year 1870, the birthday of Christ approached one corner of the world with the whine of rifle bullets, the boom of artillery, the moans of the wounded, the sound of war. This was the Franco-Prussian War, and Paris was beseiged by the Germans. French soldiers and German soldiers faced each other in the trenches before the city. Work on the trenches— that never-ending task of the foot soldier had been suspended, not because of the reverence of this night, but because the temperature was 12 degrees below zero and the ground was frozen to a depth of 20 inches. Both sides in this awful conflict were God-fearing nations. Army leaders both French and German wrote letters home optimistic of victory, for, after all, was not God on their side? At that moment the Germans were winning the spiritual tug-of-war and the battle itself. French soldiers were hungry and suffering from frostbite and freezing to death. On the German side there was a Christmas tree with very posh and lavish Christmas dinners, with beer for the troops, champagne for the officers. In the German headquarters at Versailles, the commanders had sent out the word that the long-awaited bombardment of Paris was to start soon. Back on the field of conflict artillary shells burst now and then, and steel and shot thudded into the chilled embankments and sometimes into the flesh of living men. But now as darkness approached, the Christmas Eve, the artillery exchange stopped. Rifle fire, which had been more than occasional, became sporadic. Sometimes it was many minutes before a shot was fired. Then a strange stillness, a certain quite engulfed the battlefield. Silent night, holy night, night of suffering, night of death. French and German soldiers alike put down their rifles and contemplated upon the night, upon other happier Christmas Eves and upon that night so many years ago that our Saviour was born. Suddenly, a young French soldier jumped from his trench. And in a beautiful voice he astonished the Germans across the scared terrain by singing the "Cantique de Noel". The Germans were awestruck. Still not shot was fired. In a voice that penetrated every miser; and heartache of war every trench and earthen embankment the French soldier sang: "0 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, til He appeared and the soul felt its worth." And when he had finished his song, the Frenchman stood there, quietly and humbly trembling from this song of praise and salvalion sung on a field of war and strife. And as he stood there, a thrill shivered up his hack, for a voice was responding on this Holy of holy nights. It was the voice of the enemy, of the German soldier whose thoughts were far, far from war. He, too. had left his trench, and he sang Martin Luther's Christmas hymn "Fron Heaven Above to Earth I Come." And for a little while, peace and the Spirit of Jesus Christ, brotherhood and good will to men did indeed reign on this most unlikely place. This true slory was taken from "Texas." The Houston Chronicle Magazine. Dec. 4. 1977 issue an Pulpit Helps. Dec.. 1979. |
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