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Daily Archives: December 15, 2012

A Note from the Pastors of Pender

A Note from the Pender Pastors: Pender United Methodist Church

Dear Pender Faith Community,

In light of the events in Connecticut yesterday, we want to join together in this difficult time, to pray for the victims of that tragedy.

So many are questioning what they know to be true, yet it causes people to wonder where God is at a time such as this. While it does not lessen the pain or justify the results, we must believe that God will see us through, that He is and will always be by our side. Let us attempt to turn our disbelief into prayer and our hopes for healing into really making Jesus the center of this Christmas.

We are to worship and honor our God, we are called to pray for those who are hurting, so let us begin to do that. In lieu of watching news programs that repeat the same sad story over and again, make it a point to turn off the noise and turn to God. We will do far more in the healing process if we lift up those who were impacted in such a personal way, opposed to just getting caught up in the commentaries on how and why it happened.

We encourage you to hold the parents, the fellow students, the brothers and sisters, along with friends and family members in your heart. Again, there is no sense to be made of this, but we must ask God to lessen the hurt and enable us to be a source of comfort and authentic faith beginning today. In a season normally filled with children and joy, make your prayer count as a means of filling those empty hearts and let us do it ceaselessly. While we might have suffered a loss in our spirit, by lifting others up, we will renew and petition God on behalf of all who grieve.

The Pastors

Christmas Music, Parts 13-15 – The Alfred Burt Carols

15 Dec

I could have turned the Alfred Burt Carols into the next 15 parts of this series but I decided that was a bit too easy on me!

I love this story – it’s a wonderful family tradition from the Burt family.

Starting in 1922, Alfred Burt’s father created a Christmas card for family members and parishioners. On these cards were original Christmas carols, with both the words and music by the Reverend Bates Burt. For the family Christmas card in 1942, Bates asked his son to write the music for that year’s carol, “Christmas Cometh Caroling.”

From then on, Alfred would write the music for the family’s Christmas cards, and the “Alfred Burt carols” were born.

More about the Burt family and the Christmas Carol tradition: http://www.alfredburtcarols.com/

Alfred Burt’s Carols:

“Christmas Cometh Caroling” (1942)
“Jesu Parvule” (1943)
“What Are the Signs” (1944)
“Ah, Bleak and Chill the Wintry Wind” (1945)
“All on A Christmas Morning” (1946)
“Nigh Bethlehem” (1947)
“Christ in the Stranger’s Guise” (1948)
“Sleep Baby Mine” (1949)
“This Is Christmas” (also known as “Bright, Bright, the Holly Berries”) (1950)
“Some Children See Him” (1951)
“Come, Dear Children” (1952)
“O, Hearken Ye” (1953)
“Caroling Caroling” (1954)
“We’ll Dress the House” (1954)
“The Star Carol” (1954)

Burt finished the last of his carols, “The Star Carol”, on February 5, 1954. He died less than 24 hours later, at the age of 33.

One of the best known of these today is Caroling Caroling (lyrics by the church organist at his father’s church, Wihla Hutson)

The Salt Lake Vocal Artists perform 2 carols; “Caroling, Caroling” and “We’ll Dress the House” by Alfred Burt live in concert on December 17, 2011 in Holy Family Catholic Church, South Ogden, Utah under the direction of Dr. Brady Allred.