Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was filled with sorrow at the tragic death of his wife in a fire in 1861. The Civil War broke out that same year, and it seemed this was an additional punishment. Two years later, Longfellow was again saddened to hear the his own son had been seriously wounded as a lieutenant in the Army of the Potomac.
Sitting down to his desk, one Christmas Day, he heard the church bells ringing, and ringing. It was in this setting he wrote:
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep,
God is not dead, nor doth he sleep.
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.
At this Chirstmas time whether you are in sorrow or in joy you can know that God is not dead, not doth he sleep. He knows your every need and longs to comfort you and be that special friend you need. Seek Him this year instead of the outward manifestations of the season. He will give life real meaning and your heart real peace, the peace that passes all understanding.
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Another version, adapted from “The Story Behind ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day’,” by Tom Stewart, December 20, 2001, < http://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Fellowship/Edit_I.Heard.the.Bells.html >:
Four months after the beginning of the Civil War, the Longfellow family was in Boston enjoying a summer afternoon. Henry’s wife Fanny was using a candle when a breeze caused her dress to ignite. She raced into the room where her husband was and he desperately tried to put out the flames.
She died the next day. Henry did not attend her funeral because he was too overstricken with grief and the pain from his own burns. Most photographs show him with a long beard, which he grew because he could no longer shave his face due to the scars.
A year after the incident, he wrote, “I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace.” Longfellow’s journal entry for Dec. 25th 1862 reads: “‘A merry Christmas’ say the children, but that is no more for me.”
A few months later, Longfellow’s oldest son Charles signed up in the Union army without his father’s blessing. Charles informed his father was a letter after he had already left. His son wrote, “I have tried hard to resist the temptation of going without your leave but I cannot any longer.” “I feel it to be my first duty to do what I can for my country and I would willingly lay down my life for it if it would be of any good”.
In November 1863, Charles was severely wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church in Virginia. Coupled with the death of his wife, Henry Longfellow was moved to write a poem on Christmas Day in 1863.
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail, the Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men.”
Hate will always be strong, but the love of Jesus is stronger.
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Version used in sermon by David Holwick on 12/14/2014:
Four months after the beginning of the Civil War, the Longfellow family, famous for their father’s poetry, was in their home near Boston enjoying a summer afternoon. Henry’s wife Fanny was using a candle when a breeze caused her dress to ignite. She raced into the room where her husband was and he desperately tried to put out the flames.
She died the next day. Henry did not attend her funeral because he was too overstricken with grief and the pain from his own burns. Most photographs show him with a long beard, which he grew because he could no longer shave his face due to the scars.
A year after the incident, he wrote, “I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace.” Longfellow’s journal entry for Dec. 25th 1862 reads: “‘A merry Christmas’ say the children, but that is no more for me.”
A few months later, Longfellow’s oldest son Charles signed up in the Union army without telling his father. That November, Charles was severely wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church in Virginia.
Coupled with the death of his wife, Henry Longfellow was moved to write a poem on Christmas Day in 1863.
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
But it was something he heard that Christmas morning that gave him new hope:
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail, the Right prevail, With peace on earth, good-will to men.”
*
[see also #26311 and #33955]