Sing!

 December 23, 2024

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!””                                         —Luke 2:13-14 

“And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.””                                                  —Revelation 5:9-10 

“Why bring Revelation into the Christmas story,” you ask? Because it reveals a detail often overlooked when people read the Bible. Charles Wesley penned the words, “Hark, the herald angels sing…” apparently oblivious to this Biblical detail. It’s this: In the Bible (and here in Luke’s narrative), angels never sing. They shout praises to God, but they don’t sing.

“Why not,” you ask? Because they don’t have anything to sing about. They praise God for his Gift, but they themselves know nothing of the glory of salvation. The Revelation passage has the Elders (representatives of the Church) singing the new song of redemption, but though angels can shout God’s praise, they cannot sing the song of redemption.

But you can. So SING!