Christmas Day Bells

“I heard the bells on Christmas Day,

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet the words repeat

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow penned these words on Christmas Day in 1864, after a long battle with grief. While Longfellow was a renowned academic, respected professor, and accomplished poet, he did not have an easy life. His first wife and child died as a result of complications from a miscarriage. After grieving this loss, he remarried and had six children, and again, said “goodbye” to another of his children in infancy. Though life was not perfect, Longfellow was happy…until tragedy struck again and his wife, Fannie, was killed in a fire. Longfellow, himself, was badly burned trying to save her. This, all while the country was divided during the Civil War, was compounded by his son’s leaving to join the Union army. While away, his son, Charlie, battled Scarlet Fever, and ultimately was shot through both shoulder blades–the bullet grazing the spine, but sparing Charlie a lifetime of paralysis by only a few centimeters.

Though this poem was a hopeful end to a long, tragic period in Longfellow’s life, few people know the gravity of the burden Longfellow carried for his nation, which inspired many of the lines. Longfellow’s father, Stephen, was a prominent lawyer who had served in Congress, and while Henry had strong political views, he found his work in academics, consequently, keeping many of his views to himself. (Imagine a professor keeping his political views to himself!) 

However, when it came to the issue of slavery and the Civil War, Longfellow shared his opinions in his journal, making his disappointment in, then, President James Buchanan known in his entry from January 28, 1861:

Six states have left the Union, led by South Carolina. President Buchanan is an antediluvian, an après-moi-le-déluge [a common reference to Louis XIV or Marie Antoinette] President, who does not care what happens, if he only gets safely through his term. We owe the present state of things mainly to him. He has sympathized with the disunionists. It is now too late to put the fire out. We must let it burn out (Longfellow, p.411).

His observation of bells tolling on February 22, 1861 foreshadowed the growing unrest and the absence of peace, while unknowingly foreshadowing the poem he would write on that Christmas Day in 1864: 

Washington’s birthday. Heard the bells ringing at sunrise, through the crimson eastern sky. They had a sad sound, reminding me of the wretched treason in the land (Longfellow, p. 412).

Prior to these entries, Longfellow boldly shared his beliefs as an abolitionist with the public 

in the best way he knew how–through poetry. His collection of poems, Poems on Slavery, was published in 1843, and though his work received mixed reviews, some were so impressed, they asked him to run for office. Longfellow declined because he abhorred politics and believed he could best serve his country as a poet. 

Today, the climate is much the same! We have a divided country; people are going through individual hardships, including so much grief; and there is wretched treason in our land.

“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!'”

How these words pierce my soul when I think about our state and our nation.

Longfellow’s gift of writing is well-known, but his heart for his country is often overlooked. Though he hated politics, he didn’t bury his head in the sand and go on about his life, ignorant and oblivious to the issues paralyzing his country. He also didn’t cave to the pressure of running for office, when he felt that was not where God wanted him to be.

Instead, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow used his talents and opportunities as a writer to reach the audience God gave him, sometimes sacrificing his reputation, and jeopardizing his career in order to share his beliefs in print. His Poems on Slavery didn’t seem like much of a contribution at the time, but God used them to pave the way for Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. While Abraham Lincoln is often credited with ending slavery, there were many people who were instrumental in the fight, known and unknown. Some never made it to a national stage, but God, the most important audience, sees their efforts and their contributions.

Can you relate? Are you burdened for the well-being of this country that so many fought for? Is your Christmas lacking peace, either because of the state of our nation, or because of personal hardships, or both? Do you wish you could do more, but hate politics, so you have steered clear of getting involved?

I want to encourage you in two areas. First, ask God how He can use you. He might have other opportunities for you to get involved that don’t require giving much of your time to “politics,” or He might ask you to make a sacrifice, and give you an opportunity to be involved in politics, whether you enjoy it or not. Sometimes, we have to do things that we hate! Is He asking you to run for a seat on the school board? Is He asking you to get involved in your BPOU? Perhaps you have been created for such a time as this! He might not ask you to get involved in these areas, but He does call us to action! We were never created to bury our heads in the sand, ignoring the problems around us, while we busy ourselves with work projects, or taxi our children to another activity that keeps them busy and out of our hair. What is He asking you to do?

And second, but most importantly, do not lose hope! Longfellow penned these famous words during the Civil War. He didn’t wait until it was over to find hope. He found it in the midst of his grief. 

“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.’”

May you hear the bells today! Merry Christmas!

References

Longfellow, Samuel. Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, vol. 2 (Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 1891), p. 411-412.