Some Children See Him

This was message was sent to Barbara by farmer Roberta Ford from Canterbury Parish in Tuscaloosa, Alabama who has asked that I share it here with you. At the end of the carol I have included links to short biographies of both Wihla Hutson (lyricist) and Al Bur (composer) which you may find interesting. Attached also are the names of two CDs from my Christmas CD collection that I highly recommend if you would like to hear this carol sung.

Thank you, "Ro", for sharing this with us all.

Roberta wrote:
"Dear Barbara,
Your eMo today reminds me of one of my favorite Christmas carols. I heard it in my childhood and have never forgotten it, even though it has never become popular or well known. By reproducing it here, I am sure I am stepping one someone's copyright, but here it is. For me, this little carol has always pretty much summed up what Christmas is all about. God's peace and love to you and your house,
Ro Ford, Canterbury Parish, Tuscaloosa, Alabama"

Some Children See Him by Wihla Hutson & Alfred S. Burt Copyright ©1951

Some children see Him lily white,
the baby Jesus born this night.
Some children see Him lily white,
with tresses soft and fair.
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
The Lord of heav'n to earth come down.
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
with dark and heavy hair.

Some children see Him almond-eyed,
this Savior whom we kneel beside.
some children see Him almond-eyed,
with skin of yellow hue.
Some children see Him dark as they,
sweet Mary's Son to whom we pray.
Some children see him dark as they,
and, ah! they love Him, too!

The children in each different place
will see the baby Jesus' face
like theirs, but bright with heavenly grace,
and filled with holy light.
O lay aside each earthly thing
and with thy heart as offering,
come worship now the infant King.
'Tis love that's born tonight!


For background information on Wihla Hutson, cut and paste to your browser: http://www.allsaintspontiac.org/music/ (go almost to the bottom of the page).

For background information on Alfred "Al" Burt, cut and paste to your browser:
http://www.collegiumusa.com/bios/3_alfred_burt_bio.html

Albums containing this carol:
Just in Time for Christmas, Nancy LaMott, Copyright © 1994, Midder Records, Inc.
James Taylor at Christmas, James Taylor, Copyright © 2006, Sony BMG Records
Entertainment

(Incidentally, if you go to www.amazon.com and enter either of these titles, you can choose to hear a snippet of this carol. Thanks, Debbie for the tip!)

For God So Loved the World...

The following piece was sent to me by farmer Lynn Burton.

The recording of a remarkable phone call from a 12-yr old boy to Houston radio station KSBJ FM 89.3 is available at the site below through youtube. Subscription to this service is free. Simply go to www.youtube.com to subscribe and click on Sign Up.

Once you have access to youtube, click below to the clip entitled Logan, the Sky Angel Cowboy!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=zCdZwitrNoY


Thank you Lynn, for sending this on for us to share with others!

...Pray for the Church

Form II of the Prayers of the People in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) has always impressed me with its brevity and room for elaboration.

The title of this essay comes from the first prayer in this form which, for the sake of convenience and for those who do not have a copy of the BCP, goes as follows:

I ask your prayers for God's people throughout the world; for our Bishops ______; for this gathering; and for all ministers and people.
Pray for the Church. According to the rubrics (instructions or directions in connection with conducting worship), silence is to follow this supplication during which people may add their own intentions as the Spirit moves them, either aloud or silently.

There is always an opportunity to pray for the Church during our worship services. In this holy season of preparation and expectancy we have more reason than ever before to pray for the Church: both the institution which is the Episcopal Church in this country and the greater Church, i.e. the Body of Christ made up of all baptized individuals.

We may also be mindful of those children of God who now suffer in our country as a result of the cold snap that has made several states disaster areas due to damage from high winds and ice-laden tree limbs and power lines at the breaking point. I have received many requests from Farmers on behalf of their loved ones in the those areas.

We may be mindful of the upcoming anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami and the devastation that still remains. May we remember the Church in Louisiana and Mississippi where recovery from the destruction left by Katrina and its sister storms still continues.

As we await the coming of the Savior let us not forget today and the positive impact we may have by offering our time, talent and resources to those less fortunate than ourselves. Christ said '..the poor will be with you always..' Our current economic climate finds us with more poverty and emotional poverty than in days past.

Pray for the Church and reach out to the Church: your neighbors, sisters and brothers both near and far. Let faith bond to action and make our own love tangible as we await the manifestation of the greatest Love known.