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The Inevitable, Ironic Pandemonium in Christmas Eve Worship

By Mark D. Roberts | Monday, December 29, 2008

This year my family and I joined a Christmas Eve worship service at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Burbank, California. My sister-in-law and her family are part of this church, so we joined them on Christmas Eve.

The service was quite fine. We sang several beloved Christmas carols, including: “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “Away in a Manger.” A bass soloist sang a moving version of “O Holy Night.” The church took up a special offering for a ministry that cares for poor children in Tijuana, Mexico. The pastor’s sermon was right on, hitting the core of the good news of Christmas. We shared communion together, and then finished by singing “Silent Night” outside while holding candles. All in all, it was a blessed time.

But during this service the inevitable happened yet again. Throughout most of the service, there was an undercurrent of commotion.  Babies squawked. Toddlers whispered. Elementary-aged kids shifted excitedly in their seats. I must confess that at several points in the service I was distracted because of the spontaneous participation of children.

I say this is inevitable because I’ve experienced this sort of commotion in Christmas Eve worship for years and years. When I was Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church, we had two early services on Christmas Eve that were especially for families with young children. You can imagine what happens if you jam a few hundred excited children into an enclosed space for an hour. Pandemonium! I never had to work harder to keep people’s attention during a sermon than when I gave my short Christmas Eve meditation in those services. But ever our later service at 6:30 usually had enough children present to create a Muzak of youthful din. Only our 11:00 p.m. candlelight communion service was usually free of such noise.

I know some churches that, in an effort to provide a quiet atmosphere for adult worship, try to keep parents from bringing their young children into Christmas Eve services. But, given the desire of families to worship together on the holiday, this approach rarely works. It can even cause hurt feelings and a sense of unfriendliness.

And, in my opinion, it’s not in keeping with the theological reality of Christmas. That’s why I say the pandemonium in Christmas Eve worship is ironic. Remember what we’re celebrating: the birth of a baby, a baby who no doubt made plenty of noise. Yes, I know we love “Silent Night” and sing of the little Lord Jesus “no crying he makes,” but the reality was much more ordinary. Because newborns sleep a lot, there were times of silence and “no crying” in the stable where Jesus was born. But, as one who was fully human even as he was fully God, Jesus surely made plenty of infantile racket.

I try to remember this as I’m being disturbed by children’s noises in Christmas Eve worship. Jesus didn’t come to earth as some sort of miracle child who never cried. He was really and truly human. He came into our existence to experience life as we experience it, crying, laughing, shrieking and all. Thus, though a part of me would rather enjoy Christmas Eve worship in mature silence, I’m strangely glad for the inevitable, ironic pandemonium that comes from real children doing what real children do.

Next time you’re in a Christmas service, or any worship service for that matter, and a child’s noise bothers you, remember the baby Jesus. Celebrate the wonder of God becoming fully human in Jesus. Because Jesus started life as a fully human little noisemaker, he was able to represent the rest of us noisemakers on the cross.

xmas eve candles

Photo: The conclusion of Christmas Eve worship at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Burbank, California. It’s all there: the manger and the cross, with candlelight and “Silent Night.”

Topics: Christmas |

3 Responses to “The Inevitable, Ironic Pandemonium in Christmas Eve Worship”

  1. Dale Says:
    December 29th, 2008 at 11:11 am

    When I wrote a Christmas song I made sure to say that Jesus “Cries in the night.” Just in response to that very song!

  2. paul galloway Says:
    December 31st, 2008 at 10:26 am

    I have tended to notice that exact same phenomenon. I don’t recall a lot of that as I was growing up. Possibly a little parental attention to manners and respect would be in order. Of course, I’m old enough to remember the re-direction of my energies simply by seeing the displeasure on my Father’s face.

  3. Steve Says:
    December 31st, 2008 at 8:26 pm

    I enjoyed your post. We had a baby that was really fussy during one of our Christmas Eve services this year. You could feel that some people were a little annoyed. I can remember a time when I would get a little frustrated at crying babies but then I had an interesting experience. After one of our Sunday services I happened to walk by our nursery and there was a very strong odor that sort of stopped me in my tracks. I was just about to say something when I felt the Lord impress this simple statement on my heart, “That is the smell of life”. What that meant to me was this, a church without crying babies and little children, is not a very healthy church. So when a baby fusses while I am preaching, I just think about the smell of life and I am thankful there are babies and small children to make the distraction.

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