Word: jesus
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...with long, chanted prayers in Aramaic, and even a few tunes in English from the young mixed gender choir. "We wish you a Merry Christmas, We wish you a Merry Christmas," they sang to the accompaniment of a keyboard. As Cacha stood at the altar, his traditional sermon about Jesus and Bethlehem also mixed with pragmatic appeals for peace and reconstruction...
Millions of Americans go to church on Christmas Eve. They crowd shoulder-to-shoulder in pews to sing "Silent Night" and light candles and listen to soloists belt out "O Holy Night." More than a few watch nativity plays that recreate the birth of Jesus with a cast of 10-year-olds in bathrobes. When the service is over, they exchange hearty "Merry Christmas!" wishes before getting in their cars and heading home...
...culture over religion, it is. By the middle of the 20th century, Americans had embraced a civil religion that among other things elevated the ideal of family to a sacrosanct level. The Norman Rockwell image of family gathered around the tree became a Christmas icon that rivaled the baby Jesus. And Christmas Eve services - with their pageantry and familiar traditions - became just one part of the celebration, after the family dinner and before the opening of presents...
...Service of Lessons and Carols eventually spread to the United States, where it became particularly popular in mainline Protestant churches. No similar format for Christmas Day ever took hold. Some Evangelical churches that personalize the figure of Jesus may also hold services on Christmas Day, but are a blend of traditional worship and birthday celebration, with songs like "Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus" and even birthday cake...
...Jesus films of all time...