Christmas Eve Online Service: A Timeless Tradition

This year, the Memorial Church will continue its long-standing Christmas carol service tradition with an online ceremony featuring student voices recorded individually from across the country and around the world. The service, titled 'Legend of the Little Child,' is a new composition written by Carson Cooman '04, research assistant and resident composer at the church.

The introduction of a new commissioned carol is part of the tradition, which dates back to 1910 when University Organist and Choirmaster Archibald T. established it. The service will include nine carols sung by the Harvard University Choir, four congregational hymns pulled from past years' videos, three readings, and a short sermon by Moore, the Plummer Professor of Christian Morals.

The singing of 'Silent Night' by the choir and congregation is also a long-standing tradition. The service begins with 'Adeste, fideles' sung in Latin by the Harvard University Choir, which has been a part of the ceremony for over a century.

This year's service will be different due to the pandemic, but it will still retain many traditions of the past. The choir and clergy have worked hard to create this special online event, which is free and open to the public.

Online donations can be made through the Phillips Brooks House Association in support of Y2Y Harvard Square youth homeless shelter and the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter for adults. You can watch the hour-long service on December 24th at 5 p.m. on the Memorial Church website, YouTube channel, or Facebook page.

According to Stephanie Paulsell, interim Pusey Minister in the Memorial Church and the Susan Shallcross Swartz Professor of the Practice of Christian Studies at the Harvard Divinity School, 'Members of the Harvard University Choir, under the direction of Edward Jones, have been working all semester to create this service.'

The annual Christmas carol service at Harvard stands as an unfaltering tradition for more than a century in times of peace and world war, prosperity and depression, health and pandemic, social harmony and upheaval. It is a testament to the power of music and community during the holiday season.

Join us on Christmas Eve for this special online service and experience the joy and beauty of the holiday season with the Harvard University Choir and the Memorial Church community.

Christmas eve online service