In his beloved hymn, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear, the 19th century pastor and hymnwriter Edmund Sears wrote that the angels sang “o’er the Babel sounds.” That short phrase strikes me as a hopeful note within the tumult of current news events and trends. (Wars, loudly ranting politicians, relentless climate change and AI’s rampaging all come to mind.)
What Sears recalled was an angelic late-night song, one part “Gloria” and another portion, “Peace on earth.” The glorious praise might have been overwhelmingly loud—and even boisterous—but that word of peace? That’s what I want to sing about, too. Let me try some quiet Christmas humming here….
If we look carefully, it may be perceptible that today’s Babel sounds—reminiscent of the confused and deflated yammering of self-idolatrous Old Testament tower builders—aren’t as effective as present-day noise-makers think. I sense that, on the near-horizon, the power of warmongers, haters, tyrants, self-appointed Messiahs, grifters and fraudsters is evaporating. Although my anxiety levels may still not be receding as quickly as I’d like, it feels like the slow, quiet work of justice is coming to the rescue. Society’s attention seems to be veering away from prophets of anger. The backlash against noise of any kind appears to be growing—once again, quietly. And perhaps most importantly, those who have doggedly continued to proclaim love, forgiveness, empathy and kindness—they’re still inspiring us with lives of unselfish service.
The angels knew what they were doing—frightening shepherds was not a good long-term strategy for bringing Good News to the world. Their midnight song—the “peace on earth” part—brings me comfort and reassurance: God is still working on behalf of the world God so surely loves.
This Christmas-tide blessing, then: May God’s peace bring you to quiet humming!
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