I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Many years ago I was listening to Bryan Duncan’s Christmas is Jesus CD and I fell in love with the song “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”. It was a beautiful arrangement of a classic song. The words of the song talk of despair and hardship but also reflect on the goodness and faithfulness of God.

The song which was originally a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on Christmas Day in 1864. Mr. Longfellow himself was someone acquainted with grief and despair.

In July 1861, Longfellow’s wife Fanny was burned in a tragic accident in the library of their home. The day before she had made a journal entry that read, "We are all sighing for the good sea breeze instead of this stifling land one filled with dust. Poor Allegra is very droopy with heat, and Edie has to get her hair in a net to free her neck from the weight.” Fanny had clipped some curls from 7-year-old Edith’s hair and wanted to preserve the clipping by sealing them in wax.  As she melted the sealing wax, a few drops fell unnoticed on her dress. The breeze that she had longed for in her journal entry gusted through the window, igniting her dress. Trying to protect her children Edith and Allegra, she ran into Henry’s study, where he frantically tried to extinguish the flames. Fanny passed away the next day. Longfellow himself was burned on his face, arms and hands. His trademark beard was the result of being unable to shave after the accident.

That Christmas Longfellow wrote, “How inexpressibly sad are all holidays.” A year after the accident, "I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace.”  Longfellow's journal entry for December 25th 1862 reads: "'A merry Christmas' say the children, but that is no more for me." Almost a year later, he received word that his oldest son Charles, had been severely wounded while serving as a soldier in the Civil War. Longfellow made no entry in his journal that Christmas. The following Christmas he wrote the poem. As you read the lyrics you hear the call that has been on the lips of so many for hundreds of year, the longing for peace on the earth. I can only imagine hearing the ringing of the Church bells on that Christmas morning as Longfellow penned the final verse of the song. Just close your eyes for a moment and imagine it. Like a scene from Dickens “A Christmas Carol”, I can envision Longfellow sitting at his desk writing and hearing the ringing of the bells begin, as he rises to his feel, walks to the window and throws it open. The ringing of the bells becomes louder as he looks up to Heaven and smiles and then walks back to his desk to write the final words, God is not dead nor doth He sleep, The wrong shall fail, the right prevail of peace on earth, good will to men.

I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day

I heard the bells on Christmas day

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet the words repeat

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,

The belfries of all Christendom

Had rolled along the unbroken song

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

Till ringing, singing on its way

The world revolved from night to day,

A voice, a chime, a chant sublime

Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head

'There is no peace on earth,' I said,

'For hate is strong and mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good will to men.'

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

'God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail

With peace on earth, good will to men.'

Story behind the song: The Twelve Days of Christmas

Since Christmas is just two weeks away I decided to create a series of entries that deal with some of the songs that we hear throughout the Christmas season and to share the stories behind why the songs were written. You might be aware of some of the stories or like me you may have stumbled across the story and found it fascinating. That is the case with this first song, The Twelve Days of Christmas. 


To be honest, I was never a big fan of this song. It seemed a little redundant.  What does a Partridge in a Pear Tree have to do with Christmas anyway?  Well two years ago I received an email from a friend that included a story about how this song came to be.  I was amazed  and found it extremely interesting and eye opening. 

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. This carol was written for young Catholics. It had two meanings, the surface meaning and the hidden meaning known only the members of their church. Each element in the song from the Partridge to the Drummers was a code word to allow children and I imagine adults too an easy way to remember the meaning. 

-The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.

-Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.

-Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love. 

-The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John. 

-The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament. 

-The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation. 

-Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy. 

-The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes. 

-Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control. 

-The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments. 

-The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples. 

-The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

So there is your history for today. You never know how God will use a song to get His message to his people. Maybe the next time you hear the song you will hear it through different ears as I have begun to do.