I return to Bethlehem (Pennsylvania) for today's carol, Morning Star, O Cheering Sight!. While the origin lies in a small town in Poland, our first experience with it was at a Morvian Lovefeast (see Moravians, Macaroni & a Few Good Christian Men) in the Lehigh Valley, more precisely at a Moravian church in Nazareth, PA (a scant few miles from Bethlehem...and, yes, there are many names with a Biblical theme in that region). It just so happens, that Francis Hagen, a pastor of that church in the mid-1800's composed the tune that is now sung to the poem the carol is based on, which was written by Angelus Silesius (Johann Scheffer) in the late 1600's. Nazareth, however, cannot call dibbs on the inspired work as Hagen's inspiration came when he was doing a stint teaching at a boys' school in Salem, NC.

During the Christmas Eve candlelight service, a large, central candle is lit, which symbolizes Christ as the light of the world. Beeswax candles, decorated with a red ribbon are distributed to the congregation and then lit from the central candle with each person in the congregation passing "Christ's light" on to each other. With the church darkened, a child is chosen to lead the responsive singing of this carol.

The Moravian Morning Star from the tradition of the northeast colonies is - in two dimensions - an eight-pointed star that is a symbol for love, kindness & hope. There is also a common, more universal 3D version which traditionally has 26-points.

While many pagan beliefs & customs involve stars, it is clear from God's Word who our Morning Star is:

One can trace the entire Christmas story from a thorough study of that single verse from The Revelation to John. That same Revelation gives believers great hope, right at the very beginning of the book:

God loves us. He loves you and I so much he sent His only Son to earth to experience the pain and hardships of our daily lives and to take the punishment for our sin. The original Moravian traditions at Christmas time focused solely on the celebration of Christ's birth. While that may be asking a bit much for these "enlightened" times, we would do well to pause regularly during our modern traditions to rejoice in the hope that God has given us in Jesus.

I have included the responsive form to give you a better idea of how it flows during the service. The fact that a child is the leader is a beautiful reference to Isaiah 11:1-6. I sincerely hope you have the opportunity to echo these responses in worship at a Moravian Christmas Eve celebration someday.