The first Christmas song to be sung in churches

Every Christmas, people sing the song “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night”. Unlike many other songs and carols that include elements of non-biblical tradition and myth, this song is pure Scripture. It was the primary Christmas song authorised to be sung within the Church of England. This is the story …

Brady and Tate

The song “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night” was written by Nahum Tate. It recounts the angelic announcement to the shepherds from Luke 2:8–14.

Background

During its first three centuries, the Church of England had a rule that only psalms, canticles, and metrical Scripture might be sung in church. After the Evangelical Revival, hymn-singing got here to be considered a custom of Nonconformists, especially Methodists. It was not until 1820 that the Church of England formally allowed the singing of hymns in church.

Sternhold and Hopkins

Thomas Sternhold was the primary writer of the primary English metrical versions of the Psalms, produced around 1548. Sternhold was Groom of the Robes to Henry VIII and later Edward VI, and he dedicated his Psalter to Edward VI, who reigned from 1547 to 1553. Sternhold died in 1549, and a posthumous edition of his Psalter was published. This contained 37 psalms by Sternhold and an extra seven by John Hopkins. Later, more psalms were added, with settings by John Hopkins, and these were often certain into various editions of the Geneva Bible.

In 1562, the complete set of metrical psalms was published by John Day of London. It was the primary complete English-language version of metrical psalms. These became often called the Sternhold and Hopkins Psalms. They were extremely popular and were sung widely in churches.

Brady and Tate

In the late seventeenth century, two Anglicans from Ireland worked together to provide a latest metrical edition of the Psalms. Nahum Tate (1652–1715) was the son of a Puritan cleric and was born in Dublin. Along with Nicholas Brady (1659–1726), who was from County Cork, he graduated from Trinity College, Dublin. They later moved to England, where Tate became a playwright and Brady became a priest within the Church of England. In 1692, Tate was appointed Poet Laureate of England by King William and Queen Mary.

Working together, Brady and Tate produced a latest set of metrical psalms and passages of Scripture. Tate wrote a lot of the poetry, while Brady ensured the theological accuracy.

Their collaboration resulted in A New Version of the Psalms of David, a metrical version of the Psalms. In 1696, this psalter was licensed to be used within the Church of England and printed. It went through plenty of revisions and further editions through the years. It was printed each individually and certain with the Book of Common Prayer, where it was described as “fitted to the tunes utilized in the churches”. The edition became often called Brady and Tate (or Tate and Brady). It also became known simply because the New Version, because it step by step replaced the metrical psalms of Sternhold and Hopkins, which then became often called the Old Version.

Some items from Brady and Tate are still often sung today, corresponding to their version of Psalm 34, “Through all of the changing scenes of life”. In addition to the 150 psalms, in addition they produced metrical versions of parts of the liturgy and chosen passages of Scripture.

Songs and Canticles

After the Psalms, they added several canticles — biblical songs — namely the Song of Mary, often called the Magnificat (Luke 1:46–55); the Song of Zechariah, often called the Benedictus (Luke 1:68–79); and the Song of Simeon, often called the Nunc Dimittis (Luke 2:29–32). In addition, Tate rendered other passages of Scripture into metre for singing. These included the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1–20), the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9–13), the Song of the Angels (Luke 2:8–14), and two passages from Revelation (5:12–13 and 19:6–9).

The Song of the Angels

The most well-known of those metrical Scripture passages is Nahum Tate’s Christmas song “The Song of the Angels”, which begins “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night”. It was first printed in A Supplement to the New Version of the Psalms, published in 1700. This made it the primary — and for a time the one — Christmas song authorised for Anglican worship, at a period when only psalms and canticles were otherwise permitted in church.

Scripture Passage

Nahum Tate based his text closely on the King James Version of Luke 2:8–14.

Verse 8, “And there have been in the identical country shepherds abiding in the sector, keeping watch over their flock by night”, became:
“While shepherds watch’d their flocks by night,
All seated on the bottom,”

Verse 9, “And, lo, the angel of the Lord got here upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: they usually were sore afraid”, became:
“The angel of the Lord got here down,
And glory shone around.”

Verse 10, “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people”, became:
“Fear not,” said he (for mighty dread
Had seiz’d their troubled mind),
“Glad tidings of great joy I bring
To you and all mankind.”

Verse 11, “For unto you is born today in the town of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord”, became:
“To you, in David’s town, today
Is born of David’s line
The Saviour, who’s Christ the Lord.”

Verse 12, “And this shall be an indication unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger”, became:
“And this shall be the sign:
The heavenly Babe you there shall find
To human view display’d,
All meanly wrapt in swathing-bands,
And in a manger laid.”

Verse 13, “And suddenly there was with the angel a mess of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,”, became:
“Thus spake the seraph; and forthwith
Appear’d a shining throng
Of angels, praising God, and thus
Address’d their joyful song:”

Verse 14, “Glory to God in the best, and on earth peace, good will toward men”, became:
“All glory be to God on high,
And to the earth be peace;
Good-will henceforth from Heav’n to men
Begin and never stop.”

Tune

At first, Anglicans didn’t sing the song to the tune mostly used today. The earliest tune was likely that of the English folk song “Ilkley Moor”. Today, probably the most common tune within the UK is “Winchester Old”. In the United States, Lowell Mason’s arrangement from Handel’s opera Siroe, often called “Christmas”, has gained popularity. Other tunes include “Cranbrook” and “Sherburne”.

Summary

Today, people sing this song every Christmas, often without realising that it’s probably the most scripturally accurate of Christmas songs, and that for a few years it was the just one officially permitted to be sung in a parish church.