At the age of 20, for Christmas, I was granted the great honour and privilege to travel to Oberndorf bei Salzburg where Silent Night was first written and performed for one of the performances. Honestly, I felt a little guilty at the time, and it has haunted me in the intervening years that I took time away from my responsibility as an evangelist to do something for myself. Many ghosts from that period of my life haunt me, but this Christmas, this day, the Ghost of Christmas Past paid me a visit and gave me a different perspective on my life and times in that land. He reminded me that what we do matters, that why we do it matters, that to whom we do things matters, and that for whom we do things matters. Although it’s true that I made the pilgrimage to Oberndorf primarily for myself, I would not have done so simply as a tourist. I did so because it maintains greater meaning for me than photographs, souveniers, and memories. At Christmas time we face many options of how to spend our time, with whom to spend our time, and where we spend our time, and that Christmas I chose to spend my time attending a specific church to hear a specific hymn about a specific and very special Man.
Remembering Jesus is also worshipping Him. We went to Oberndorf because of a song, but the song wasn’t a concert or a fad or some passing fancy of personal interest. It was a hymn, and a wondrous one at that, that echoes in time in the intervening centuries. This year is the 200th anniversary of “Stille Nacht” played on the guitar in that simple and humble chapel in Oberndorf. I think because of that Christmas that this particular song remains my favourite Christmas hymn. I got to live at Christmas in a nation replete with the signs of Christmas yore. Granted, we traveled there for selfish reasons and for personal enrichment, but we also went there because of that hymn which silently, simply, and succinctly recounts the story of Advent from Luke’s gospel without the pomp and ceremony of other Christmas hymns. I like other Christmas music, but Silent Night retains a special place in my heart, and I play it sometimes on my guitar in March or October, and it helps me remember not only that night but the reason why we care about that night, that song, that season, and that place. It helps me remember Christ, remember what I was supposed to be doing as a special witness of Christ, and what Christmas actually means. I felt guilty then for “wasting” so much time, but then I thought today of the wise men who heard of the Savior and traveled from the east (as we did) to come to where the Savior lay. Maybe there were important things they could do to serve the master in their near confines, but the most important thing we can do in this life is to come to Christ, to come and see Him, to behold the Savior, and to always remember Him.
Standing in Holy Places is a way to honour His memory and life. I know that this particular chapel isn’t recognized by the Catholic Church or by any church as a holy site, but it is a holy place. Other places in Austria at Christmas time (like the Christkindlemarkt in Salzburg) feel much like secular places elsewhere at other times of the year, busy, harried, and void of divine light. The Oberndorf chapel like sites in the Holy Land attracts a large crowd, but I never saw a more muted or reverent audience at a concert. I think that Oberndorf attracts a certain type of person, true disciples, people who actually want to draw near to Christ. It contains no relics, remains a humble place, and lies far from the beaten path of tours and tour groups. However, it lies close to the heart of those who wish for more silent nights, more holy nights where we can be in Heavenly Peace. You don’t have to walk where Jesus walked, but it behooves you to walk in places He would walk and the way in which He would have you walk. There are many holy places, or at least there are many places that are made holy by the people there and by the things those people do there. Oberndorf is a small parish church where the faithful of that region gather to worship the Savior and where once a year the faithful from other regions flock in pilgrimage to pay their respects to a Savior who already lived, died, and lived again so that we might have hope for a better world.
Coming together in unity as He has asked us to do is consistent with His work. At Christmas in Austria that year, only a week after my trip to Oberndorf, we spent several hours in the Fuertner home in Voels Austria celebrating Christmas with their family. We ate, we sang, we read scriptures, and we talked. I felt bad that we spent so much time with a single family which already knew of and was drawing towards the Savior when I could have been out looking for other people who weren’t sure He existed or were disinclined to accept His invitation or who maybe waited for me to come and answer a prayer offered to Him. However, now that I am older and more mature, I realize that what we did was something of which He would have likely approved. Maybe there was something better for us to do, but we did not ask, and He did not EVER register His disproval. In fact, I remember very strongly the presence of His Spirit in that humble home as we sang carols and ate and talked and laughed and thought about Christmas while giving gifts in similitude of that first Christmas as well as of His life and the gifts He would have us give. I never heard anyone complain, and I don’t think I ever will. He asks us to love one another, to be with and strengthen one another, to be with and uplift those we claim we love, and to remember Him. We did that, and so I feel the ghosts of my own guilt depart.
My trip to Oberndorf remains a cherished Christmas experience. I remember awakening and hearing the bells on Christmas day, walking through Salzberg eating chestnuts roasted over an open fire, having figgy pudding at the Christmas dinner, and perhaps most importantly attending a church to listen to one of my favourite hymns about the Christ. Ironically, it snowed that night there too (we went a few days before Christmas for reasons that don’t matter here). It was a special night, a special experience, and a time to think about something very special to me. So, if you like, here is my rendition of that Christmas hymn and my wish that as you remember the Savior, stand where He stood, and serve people as He served, that He will bring gifts to you and improve your life as is our hope. Merry Christmas.
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