Rise from your knees

A new era of peace among people and all living creatures of the earth

Hi all,

Thank you for joining me for this Sunday Special commentary.

Comments and questions are welcome. If you’d like to hear the song before you read the background, I’ve included a YouTube video below the article. For Japanese students, a glossary of the vocabulary in bold is provided below. TOEFL (PBT) 450+, Eiken 2, CEFR B1. If you have the Substack app on your phone, you can LISTEN to the article as you read. 

(176 words)

O, holy night is a version of the traditional Christmas song of the same name. The lyrics were written by Holly Near in 1993. Here, she is singing with Brian Green.

The lyrics do not reflect any particular religion. They call for the end of fear and for a new era of peace among people.

I invite you to listen to the exquisite intermingling of these two voices. No matter what your culture or your religious values are, this is a gift, a wish for readers of Social Issues in Song for the coming year.

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining 

This is the time a new decade is born 

Long has lived the world in fear and error pining 

But when peace appears, the soul knows its worth 

A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices 

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn 

Rise from your knees, and hear the people’s voices 

O night divine, O night let peace be born 

O night, O night, O night divine

VOCABULARY

exquisite 絶妙

intermingle 混在

pine 慕う

weary 疲れた

rejoice  喜ぶ

yonder 向こう

morn 朝 (morning)

divine 神聖な

EXTRA!

For those or you who are familiar with Bing Crosby and David Bowie, Brad Kyle over at “Front Row & Backstage” has a wonderful article about their duet of “Peace on earth/Little Drummer Boy”. I encourage you to read it at:

https://substack.com/home/post/p-87187357