Come Let Us Adore Him - Robert J. Morgan - Part 2 - Host, Dr. Freda V. Crews

BOOK. IT WOULD MAKE A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL GIFT FOR
SOMEONE. STAY RIGHT THERE. WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
IT HAS TAKEN CENTURIES TO POOL THE COMBINATIONS OF SECULAR
AND RELIGIOUS CELEBRATIONS AND TRADITIONS TOGETHER SO THAT WE
HAVE WHAT WE KNOW AND CELEBRATE TODAY AS CHRISTMAS.
THERE ARE THOSE WHO TRY TO DETACH THEMSELVES FROM
OBSERVING IT ALTOGETHER, BELIEVING IT TO BE A HEATHEN
HOLIDAY WITH ONLY THE TRAPPINGS OF A CHRISTIAN
CELEBRATION. OTHERS DO THEIR BEST TO KEEP THEIR FOCUS ON
"THE REASON FOR THE SEASON", BELIEVING IT TO BE CELEBRATING
THE MIRACULOUS BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD COMING
INTO THE WORLD TO REDEEM HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SIN. AND WE
WILL FIND OTHERS MERELY GOING ALONG FOR ALL THE FUN,
PARTIES, GIFTS AND OTHER FESTIVITIES CONNECTED TO THE
BIGGEST AND BRIGHTEST HOLIDAY OF THE YEAR. REFERRING TO
THOSE WHO ATTEMPT TO DETACH THEMSELVES FROM OBSERVING
CHRISTMAS, WE MUST CONCLUDE THAT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO
THIS ENTIRELY - UNLESS...YOU CAN TELL THE WORLD TO STOP SO
THAT YOU CAN GET OFF AND CATCH IT AGAIN AFTER THE FIRST OF
THE YEAR. IF YOU FIT INTO THE CAMP OF REMEMBERING THE
"REASON FOR THE SEASON" YOU WILL HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME
DISSECTING MERE TRADITION AND OTHER ACTIVITIES OUT SO YOU
CAN REMAIN CENTERED ON THE BIRTH OF THE CHRIST CHILD. AND
IF YOU ARE FOUND IN THE LARGEST CROWD - THOSE WHO
SIMPLY GO ALONG FOR THE FUN AND FESTIVITIES PLUS THE
EXCUSE TO INDULGE IN BEHAVIORS USUALLY DEEMED UNACCEPTABLE,
YOU WILL END UP THE LOSER FOR NOT HAVING LISTENED TO THE
STORY OF A SAVIOR WHO WAS BORN OVER TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO IN
BETHLEHEM IN JUDEA. THE BABY JESUS WAS INDEED THE SON OF
GOD. HE WAS BORN OF A VIRGIN, LIVED A SINLESS LIFE, DIED ON
AN OLD RUGGED CROSS, WAS BURIED IN A BORROWED TOMB,
AROSE AGAIN ON THE THIRD DAY, AND NOW SITS AT THE RIGHT HAND
OF HIS FATHER INTERCEDING FOR PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND ME. I
CHALLENGE YOU TO MAKE THIS CHRISTMAS REALLY SPECIAL BY
PURSUING A PERSONAL, RENEWED, OR MORE INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP
WITH THE SON OF GOD, WHO WAS INDEED BORN OF A WOMAN -
BECAME FLESH AND DWELT AMONG US - AND GAVE HIMSELF AS A SIN
OFFERING FOR US SO THAT WE MIGHT HAVE OUR SINS FORGIVEN
FOREVER.
♪ [SINGING THE FIRST NOEL] ♪
WE APPRECIATE YOU STAYING WITH US ON TIME FOR HOPE. OUR GUEST
IS ROBERT MORGAN AND WE ARE TALKING ABOUT HIS BOOK, "COME
LET US ADORE HIM". ROBERT, YOU KNOW WHAT I WANT TO HEAR
ABOUT? I KNOW I'VE ALREADY HEARD A LOT OF... WE'VE
ALREADY PUT OUT A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION, BUT I REMEMBER
THERE WAS A FRIEND OF MINE AND MY HUSBAND THAT KNEW A LOT
ABOUT THE HYMNS THAT THE TROOPS WOULD SING DURING THE
CIVIL WAR; HOW THEY WOULD ANSWER EACH OTHER FROM CAMP TO
CAMP. NOW YOU'VE BROUGHT UP THAT THE CIVIL WAR ALSO
PRODUCED ONE OF OUR CHRISTMAS HYMNS. HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT?
>>IT'S THE HYMN, "I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY, THEIR
OLD FAMILIAR CAROLS PLAY". DO YOU REMEMBER THAT HYMN? IT'S
BY HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW. HE LIVED IN CAMBRIDGE,
MASSACHUSETTS DURING THE CIVIL WAR. HIS SON RAN AWAY AND
JOINED MR. LINCOLN'S ARMY AND WAS WOUNDED VERY BADLY.
BROUGHT BACK TO WASHINGTON, DC, HE WAS IN A MILITARY
HOSPITAL THERE. LONGFELLOW HEARD ABOUT IT AND WENT DOWN
TO WASHINGTON, GOT HIS SON, BROUGHT HIM BACK TO CAMBRIDGE,
AND SAT BY HIS BED ALL DAY AND NIGHT THROUGHOUT DECEMBER OF
THAT YEAR, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE 1800S. NURSING HIS SON
BACK TO RECOVERY, HENRY WADSWORTH WAS LOW OF SPIRIT.
ONE DAY, HE OPENED THE WINDOW, LET THE COLD WINTER'S AIR IN
AND HE HEARD THE CHURCH BELLS. HE REALIZED IT WAS CHRISTMAS
DAY AND HE SAT DOWN AND HE WROTE THAT POEM: "I HEARD THE
BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY, THEIR OLD FAMILIAR CAROLS PLAY". HE
TALKED ABOUT HOW IT ENCOURAGED HIM AND THE IMPORTANCE OF
CHRISTMAS. AND THAT BECAME THE GREAT CHRISTMAS CAROL THAT WE
ARE STILL SINGING TO THIS DAY! IT CAME FROM THE BEDSIDE OF
HIS SICK AND RECUPERATING SON DURING THE CIVIL WAR.
>>THAT'S ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR BEAUTIFUL STORIES THAT YOU
HAVE UNCOVERED. THEN, YOU SAY THAT A BROKEN ORGAN HAD
SOMETHING TO DO WITH ANOTHER ONE OF OUR CHRISTMAS CAROLS.
>>YES, THIS IS THE MOST FAMOUS OF ALL OF THE CHRISTMAS CAROLS
AND THE CHRISTMAS CAROL STORIES. IT IS "SILENT NIGHT!
HOLY NIGHT! ALL IS CALM, ALL IS BRIGHT". THAT COMES FROM
THE AUSTRIAN ALPS, FROM THE LITTLE TOWN OF OBERNDORF,
WHERE ON CHRISTMAS EVE OF 1818, THE PASTOR THERE, FATHER
JOSEPH MOHR, WAS FACING A DILEMMA BECAUSE IT WAS A NEW
CHURCH, THE CHURCH OF ST. NICHOLAS OF ALL THINGS. BUT
THE ORGAN WAS BROKEN. ALL OF THE PLANS FOR THE MUSICAL
MIDNIGHT MASS HAD JUST BEEN SCRAPPED AND HE DIDN'T KNOW
WHAT TO DO. PEOPLE WOULD BE COMING EXPECTING THIS
MARVELOUS SERVICE AND THEY DIDN'T HAVE ANY MUSIC. SO HE
VERY QUICKLY WROTE DOWN, ON A SIMPLE PIECE OF PAPER HE
FOUND, THE WORDS TO A HYMN THAT HE COMPOSED. SILENT
NIGHT! HOLY NIGHT! HE GAVE IT TO HIS ORGANIST, WHOSE NAME
WAS FRANZ GRUBER, AND GRUBER WROTE OUT THE MUSIC FOR THE
GUITAR. SO, WHEN THE PEOPLE CAME, THEY HEARD THIS ACOUSTIC
SET, THESE TWO MEN, SINGING "SILENT NIGHT! HOLY NIGHT!" TO
A GUITAR. PEOPLE HAD EXPECTED, YOU KNOW, THE PIPE ORGAN AND
ALL OF THE MAJESTY; THEY JUST GOT THIS SIMPLE LITTLE HYMN.
THEY DIDN'T KNOW THAT THEY WERE HEARING, FOR THE FIRST
TIME, THE MOST FAMOUS OF ALL OF OUR CHRISTMAS CAROLS.
"SILENT NIGHT! HOLY NIGHT! ALL IS CALM, ALL IS BRIGHT". AND
SO IT BECAME VERY POPULAR OUT OF AUSTRIA. FROM YEAR TO YEAR,
IT WAS SANG MORE AND MORE UNTIL THE ROYAL FAMILY OF
AUSTRIA LOVED IT, AND IT SPREAD FROM THERE UNTIL NOW.
IT'S KNOWN ALL OVER THE WORLD.
>>IT IS AMAZING TO ME THAT YOU CAN REMEMBER ALL OF THESE
STORIES. I DON'T THINK YOU EVER HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT
GETTING ALZHEIMER'S, WITH THAT KIND OF MEMORY. WE HAVE JUST
REALLY A GREAT NUMBER OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN VIEWERS. THEY
LOVE THE PROGRAM. THEY'RE ALWAYS CATCHING ME LOCALLY,
TELLING ME HOW MUCH IT MEANS TO THEM AND SO FORTH. SO YOU
ALSO HAVE INCLUDED THEM IN A CHRISTMAS CAROL. "GO TELL IT
ON THE MOUNTAIN". TELL ME ABOUT THAT.
>>YES, THIS COMES FROM MY OWN TOWN OF NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE.
DURING AND AFTER THE CIVIL WAR, A UNIVERSITY WAS
ESTABLISHED THERE IN NASHVILLE; A GREAT SCHOOL FOR
THE FREED SLAVES. IT WAS FISK UNIVERSITY. BUT, FISK HAD A
VERY DIFFICULT TIME GETTING THE FINANCIAL SUPPORT IT
NEEDED. IT ALMOST CLOSED ITS DOORS, THEY WERE IN CRISIS. SO
A GROUP OF FISK STUDENTS GOT TOGETHER AND STARTED SINGING.
THEY WERE KNOWN AS "THE JUBILEE SINGERS". THEY ARE
VERY, VERY FAMOUS NOW BECAUSE, AS THEY WERE PRACTICING, THE
DIRECTOR OF THE JUBILEE SINGERS... HE WAS DIRECTING
THEM IN ALL OF THIS CHORAL STUFF; BUT OUT IN THE
DORMITORIES AND BEHIND THE SCHOOL, HE HEARD THEM SINGING
THEIR PLANTATION SONGS WHICH HE WAS VERY INTRIGUED WITH
MUSICALLY. SO HE BEGAN WEAVING OF THOSE INTO THE REPERTOIRE
OF WHAT THEY WERE SINGING. THAT WAS THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN
SPIRITUAL. THE GREAT OLD "SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOT"
SORTS OF SONGS IS A VERY UNIQUE GENRE. ONE OF THOSE WAS
"GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN", THE STORY ABOUT JESUS CHRIST
IS BORN. THE FISK UNIVERSITY SINGERS, THE JUBILEE SINGERS,
TOOK THEIR MUSIC AND THEIR AFRICAN-AMERICAN SPIRITUALS
ALL OVER THE UNITED STATES TO RAISE MONEY FOR FISK
UNIVERSITY, WHICH THEY DID. THEY WERE INVITED TO EUROPE
BUT IT WAS THEIR SINGING OF THE SPIRITUALS THAT JUST
ENCHANTED, REALLY, THE WHOLE WORLD. THEY INVENTED, OR, AT
LEAST, POPULARIZED, THIS GENRE OF MUSIC WHICH, BEFORE THEN,
HADN'T BEEN KNOWN OUTSIDE OF THE SOUTH AND OUTSIDE OF
AFRICAN-AMERICAN CIRCLES. THE ONE CHRISTMAS CAROL THAT COMES
OUT OF THE SPIRITUALS WHICH WE ARE STILL SEEING TODAY IS "GO
TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN, THAT JESUS CHRIST IS BORN."
>>I BET NO ONE CAN SING IT LIKE THEY CAN. THEY JUST CAN
SING FROM THE SOUL LIKE WE CAN'T. I CAN'T SING BUT NOT FROM
THE SOUL LIKE THEY CAN.
>>THE JUBILEE SINGERS ARE STILL PERFORMING. THAT GROUP
HAS PASSED ON FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION TO GENERATION
AND YOU CAN GO TO NASHVILLE NOW OR WHEREVER THEY ARE AND
YOU CAN STILL HEAR THE FISK UNIVERSITY JUBILEE SINGERS.
THEY SING AS BEAUTIFULLY AS EVER. THE HERITAGE OF THAT
GROUP GOES ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE EARLY DAYS RIGHT AFTER THE
CIVIL WAR.
>>I'M GLAD THAT WE WERE ABLE TO COVER FROM... GO FROM SO
MANY DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS IN TALKING ABOUT THE ORIGINS OF
THESE HYMNS AND WHERE THEY CAME FROM. ROBERT, YOU HAVE
DONE JUST AN EXTRAORDINARILY GOOD JOB IN YOUR BOOK. AND
AGAIN I ENCOURAGE OUR VIEWERS TO THINK OF GETTING IT AS A
GIFT FOR SOMEONE OR FOR THEMSELVES... EITHER ONE. WITH
SO MANY BOOKS OUT, I'VE GOT A FEELING YOU'LL BE BACK ON TIME
FOR HOPE.
>>THANK YOU SO MUCH.
>>WE DO APPRECIATE YOU AND YOUR MINISTRY. MAY THE LORD
BLESS YOU. MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AND WE HOPE THAT YOU HAVE
GOTTEN A BLESSING. YOU CAN STILL GET A GREATER BLESSING
IF YOU'LL MAKE SURE THAT YOU GET ONE OF ROBERT'S BOOKS.
ALSO, I WANT TO SHARE A LETTER FROM ONE OF OUR VIEWERS. WE
GET SUCH GREAT LETTERS INTO TIME FOR HOPE. THEY SHARE WITH
US THE MINISTRY THAT WE SHARE WITH THEM.
[LETTER FROM VIEWER]
IT COULDN'T BE SAID BETTER. THAT'S EXACTLY
WHAT WE SEE AS OUR VISION AND MISSION FOR TIME FOR HOPE.
IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN, BELIEVE IT OR NOT. CHRISTMAS
MUSIC AND SONGS ARE BEING HEARD EVERYWHERE WE GO. THEY
FILL THE AIR WITH EXCITEMENT OF FAMILY GATHERINGS, GOING
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS, MARITAL ENGAGEMENTS, PRESENTS,
VACATIONS, MUSICAL CONCERTS, AND FOR MANY, WORSHIPING THE
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS WHO WAS BORN IN A MANGER
OVER 2000 YEARS AGO. BUT, FOR OTHERS, IT IS A TIME OF GRIEF,
LONELINESS AND DEPRESSION. IT IS MY PRAYER THAT MY GUESTS
AND I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SPREAD EXCITEMENT AND HOPE THROUGHOUT
OUR VIEWING AUDIENCE. THIS IS THE VISION AND MISSION OF THIS
MINISTRY; NOT ONLY DURING THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS, BUT
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. MORE AND MORE OF YOU ARE JOINING US IN
CARRYING OUT OUR MISSION OF PROVIDING HOPE TO THOSE
TEMPTED TO BELIEVE THERE IS NONE. MAYBE YOU COULD CHEER
SOMEONE UP BY GIVING THEM ONE OF OUR GUEST'S BOOKS? AND YOU
CAN CERTAINLY BRING CHEER TO US AT TIME FOR HOPE BY SENDING
A GIFT TO THIS MINISTRY. YOU MAY CALL US AT 1-800-669-9133
OR WRITE US AT P.O. BOX 2169 SPARTANBURG, SC 29304. OUR
WEBSITE IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE AT TIMEFORHOPE.ORG. .