Passage: Lyrics to the hymn The Angel Gabriel(As they appear in my hymnal
The angel Gabriel from Heaven came,/With wings as drifted snow, with eyes as flame:/"All hail to thee, O lowly maiden Mary,/Most highly favoured lady."/Gloria!
"For know a blessed mother thou shalt be,/All generations laud and honour thee;/Thy son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,/Most highly favoured lady."/Gloria!
Then gentle Mart meekly bowed her head;/"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said./"My soul shall laud and magnify God's holy name."/Most highly favoured lady,/Gloria!
Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ, was born./In Bethlehem all on a Christmas morn,/And Christian folk throughout the world will ever say:/"Most highly favoured lady."/Gloria!
Words: Basque, circa 18th century; paraphrased Sabine Baring-Gould, 1834-1924
My hymnal also says the following below the song: "Mary was uniquely favoured among women--chosen by God to give birth to His Son! She responded with firm faith in God's word of promise carried to her by the angel Gabriel."
I can't look at this song without remembering my best friend's slip-up on the lyrics. We were practising it in choir and she sang, "Most highly fLavoured lady..." She realized and looked at me with a grin as she sang the word Lady, which breaks in the middle for a new note: "La-dy". Deciding to go along with that, she finished the verse, holding the first vowel with us as we contorted our voices around the notes: "Glo-o-o-o-o. . . . ri-os"
That is all.
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The meaning of the candles.
I have always wondered about their specific meaning, namely the fact that there is this one random pink one which, I discovered today, is lit on the third Sunday. Oops... I had to make a little change in the picture I had saved on file. This is why the pink candle is on the end and is lit before the next logical one.
I decided to do research.
I also like dramatically hitting the enter button.
Ta-da.
Okay, so anyway I already knew that each of the candles has a name, because the names are written on a sheet of paper in the back room of my church for the ushers to read and use. The names vary between churches and denominations, representing different aspects of the church Christmas. The two things that are consistent in names are 1) the Christ Candle, the white candle in the middle of the advent wreath which, as its name indicates, represents Christ Himself and is lit on Christmas morning and the subsequent Sundays in the Christmas season, and 2) the pink/"rose" Joy candle which symbolizes the shift from sombre preparation to eager anticipation. Thus, the pink candle is lit on the third Sunday of Advent because it marks the turning point.
I hope that shed some light; it sure did for me :)
~Godspede
I have always wondered about their specific meaning, namely the fact that there is this one random pink one which, I discovered today, is lit on the third Sunday. Oops... I had to make a little change in the picture I had saved on file. This is why the pink candle is on the end and is lit before the next logical one.
I decided to do research.
I also like dramatically hitting the enter button.
Ta-da.
Okay, so anyway I already knew that each of the candles has a name, because the names are written on a sheet of paper in the back room of my church for the ushers to read and use. The names vary between churches and denominations, representing different aspects of the church Christmas. The two things that are consistent in names are 1) the Christ Candle, the white candle in the middle of the advent wreath which, as its name indicates, represents Christ Himself and is lit on Christmas morning and the subsequent Sundays in the Christmas season, and 2) the pink/"rose" Joy candle which symbolizes the shift from sombre preparation to eager anticipation. Thus, the pink candle is lit on the third Sunday of Advent because it marks the turning point.
I hope that shed some light; it sure did for me :)
~Godspede
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