Name: Lessons and Carols: Chattanooga, TN
Start: 2024-12-15T17:00:00-05:00
Location: Christ Church Episcopal Chattanooga

The traditional Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols originated in the aftermath of the First World War. In 1918, Eric Milner-White, a former British army chaplain, was appointed Dean of King’s College, Cambridge. His experiences as an army chaplain had convinced him that the Church of England needed more imaginative forms of worship. Seeking to reach those who felt alienated from the church or religion altogether, Milner-White devised the service of Nine Lessons and Carols as a simpler, more accessible alternative to the complex liturgies of the time. The service alternated between choral anthems, congregational hymns, and biblical readings.
Although innovative, the 1918 service was inspired by an earlier version created by the Bishop of Truro, E. W. Benson, in 1880. The first service at Truro was held at 10:00 pm on Christmas Eve in the makeshift wooden structure known affectionately as the ‘shed’, which served as Truro Cathedral. Archbishop Benson’s son later recalled: "My father arranged from ancient sources a little service for Christmas Eve—nine carols and nine tiny lessons, which were read by various officers of the Church, beginning with a chorister, and ending, through the different grades, with the Bishop." This tradition of alternating lessons and carols endures to this day at King’s College.
Soon after hearing of the Truro service, other churches adapted it for their own use, but it was Milner-White’s adaptation in 1918 that was particularly significant. He introduced the service in the wake of the First World War, using it as a way to invite the community into King’s College Chapel and acknowledge the collective grief and suffering caused by the war. The college alone had lost 211 men during the conflict. In response, Milner-White wrote what became known as the "Bidding Prayer," a moving call to prayer that invited all who gathered to reflect on the tragedies of the past and the hope of Christ’s birth. The prayer begins with an invitation to meditate on the story of Christ’s birth, asking all present to journey "even unto Bethlehem" in their imaginations. It then calls the congregation to make the church "glad with our carols of praise" and to remember those who are suffering, both personally and collectively. Finally, Milner-White invites all to honor those who have passed, urging the congregation to "remember before God all those who rejoice with us but on another shore and in a greater light." This prayer would have resonated deeply with the many in the congregation who had lost loved ones in the war, and who felt their absence keenly during the Christmas season.
Today, the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is celebrated across denominations and around the world in various forms. The service we offer follows the traditional structure of the King’s College service, recounting the Christmas story through nine scriptural lessons, from the Creation of the world to the arrival of the Magi. The lessons are interspersed with choral anthems and hymns that reflect humanity’s longing for liberation from sin and death, and our joyful hope and expectation for the birth of Christ.