Have you ever wondered where some of your favorite Christmas songs came from?

I did some research and discovered the following:

Father Joseph Mohr, a young priest was assigned to a small church in Oberndorf, Austria. He was supposed to lead the Christmas Eve service 24 hours later, but he discovered the organ did not work. On Dec. 23, he attended the town Christmas play, and after the play, instead of going home, he climbed the small mountain and stood admiring the snow below. The moonbeams bounced off the snow and lit up the countryside. In the early morning hours of Dec. 24, 1818, he sat down and penned the words to one of the most well-loved Christmas hymns, Silent Night.

Silent Night, holy night

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon virgin, mother and child

Holy infant, so tender and mild

Sleep in heavenly peace

As the words continued flowing, he imagined Bethlehem bathed in the glow of the moon. He visualized the shepherds quaking with fear from their quiet vigil over the sheep and the glories streaming from the heavens.

Son of God, Loves pure light

Radiant beams from the holy face

With the dawn of redeeming grace

Jesus Lord at thy birth.

The next morning, he brought his songs to the church organist, Franz Gruber, and asked him to put music to his song, “Still Nacht! Heilige Nacht!” so it could be accompanied by guitar. The organist was able to do as he asked, and the service went on beautifully.

A master organ builder heard the song and sang it everywhere he went. Hearing him, two travelling families, similar to the Von Trapp family, heard the song and sang Silent Night wherever they held concerts.

In 1834, the Strasser family performed it for the king of Prussia, and the Rainer family brought the hymn to America in 1839.

Frank Mohr died of pneumonia in 1848.

Sometimes, the smallest churches make the largest contributions. In this case, God presented a most wonderful carol to the world using a small congregation, called the Saint Nicholas Church of Oberndorf.

And, now you know.