Inside: One of our oldest Christmas carols, “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman,” started life as an alternative to the dark and somber church music of its day.
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman, a History
Church-goers of the 15th century endured rather dark and somber religious songs, sung in Latin, so they created their own music outside of church. One of our oldest Christmas carols, “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentleman,” came to be as a result. The song caught on and became popular, yet it took some two hundred years before this beloved Christmas carol became mainstream in the church.
Around 1760, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman” first appeared in print, though the original words and punctuation were somewhat different than the standard we know and love today:
God rest you merry, Gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
For Jesus Christ our Saviour
Was born upon this Day.
To save poor souls from Satan’s power,
Which long time had gone astray.
Which brings tidings of comfort and joy.
The meaning of that first line might surprise us. According to the language of the time period, “merry” meant “mighty or strong” and “rest” could be translated as “to keep.” Basically, “May God keep you strong, gentleman” because Jesus has come to save all mankind.
For me, it’s a personal favorite, whether Bing sings it–a great version, I might add–or hearing the song in any movie version of A Christmas Carol. Obviously it was a favorite of Charles Dickens, too, as he quoted it in his famous book!
Related posts:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Do You Hear This Carol? 2021
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: An Unforgettable Small Town 2019
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Hearing Christmas Bells 2020
This year’s 12 Posts of Christmas:
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 1: Our Hillbilly Christmas Wreath 2022
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 2: Tortilla Cinnamon Rolls Revisited
The 12 Posts of Christmas, Day 3: A Truly Southern Christmas Essay