Posted on by David Steers

Christmas at Dunmurry

We’ve had a splendid succession of Christmas events and services at Dunmurry beginning with the Visit of the Choir of Malone Integrated College.

We were delighted to welcome the Malone Choir with their musical director Caroline Mitchell to our Warm Space on Thursday, 4th December. The Choir sang a wonderful, varied programme for the best part of two hours. It is always such a treat to have them with us and above is a video of some of the pieces they sang.

On Friday, 12th December we held our Candlelight Carol Service with Harmonic Sounds Concert Band. It was an excellent night with readings given by Church members and two special guests – John Neill, Kathy Yuille, Sylvia McBride, Claire Cromie, Adele Johnston, Diana Taggart, Des McKeown (First Church), Rt Rev Alister Bell (Moderator NSPCI) and Dr Chamindra Weerawardhana.

Click on the video to see our Candlelight Carol Service with Harmonic Sounds

During the service a Collection was taken for the Motor Neurone Disease Association Northern Ireland. This raised the magnificent total of £344.50. When that is added to the £1,405 already raised for the MND Association at our Table Quiz that means that we have raised £1,749.50 altogether for our charity. An excellent result that will be presented to the Association in the New Year. Well done everyone.

Over the period before Christmas there was another wonderful response from the congregation for the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal. Bags and bags of new toys were brought to the Church by our members and these were taken to the Salvation Army for distribution to children in need on Monday, 15th December. Our support of this appeal is greatly appreciated and helps make a difference to many children’s lives over Christmas.

View our Congregational Carol Service – click on the video above

Our Congregational Carol Service took place on Sunday, 21st December at 11.30 am and was a great occasion. The service was led by members of the Sunday School and Youth Group and readings were given for us by Lochlan, Erin, Darcee, Holly, Jenna, Bryn, Adele and Sue. Music was provided for us by Jack Steers on trumpet and Allen Yarr on organ and the members of the Sunday School decorated the Christmas Tree with decorations they had made.

On Christmas Day we were pleased to welcome Richard Yarr to the organ bench and enjoyed readings from Lochlan, Erin and Sue. It was a lovely short service.

Over we also received our Highly Commended certificate from the National Churches Trust in the Church and Community Volunteer Awards section for the work done in developing and cataloguing the Very Rev William McMillan Library. It’s great to see the Library taking shape and playing such an important role in the life of the congregation and the denomination, with visitors coming from across the UK. It’s a great achievement to reach the last 16 in a UK-wide event, and well done to Sue Steers and Kathy Yuille for all their hard work over the years. The Library will take on even more importance in the New Year when we celebrate our 350th Anniversary as a congregation.


 

Posted on by David Steers

Christmas 2024

In celebration of Christmas we have this short video which looks at Charles Dickens and Christmas. The work of Charles Dickens has become deeply entwined in the way we celebrate and enjoy Christmas, most notably through his work A Christmas Carol but it runs through all his writing. A lot of the Victorian imagery that accompanies so much Christmas celebration probably harks back to DIckens as much as anything else.

This short video makes some use of words by Chales Dickens with images from the Continental Market in Belfast and trumpet playing by Jack Steers:

Click on the video

Botticelli Nativity (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Christmas Prayer

Let us pray that strength and courage abundant be given to all who work for a world of reason and understanding; that the good that lies in every one’s heart may day by day be magnified; that we will come to see more clearly not that which divides us, but that which unites us; that each hour may bring us closer to a final victory, not of nation over nation, but of humans over their evils and weaknesses; that the true spririt of this Christmas Season – its joy, its beauty, its hope, and above all its abiding faith – may live among us; that the blessings of peace be ours – the peace to build and grow, to live in harmony and sympathy with others, and to plan for the future with confidence.

(from Celebrating Christmas An Anthology, ed. Carl Seaburg)

Click on the video for an audio recording of our carol service with pictures from the day

We held our Congregational Carol Service at Dunmurry on Sunday, 22nd December. This was a wonderful occasion that was hugely enjoyable with contributions by the Youth Group and Sunday School. With thanks to Allen Yarr for playing the organ and Jack Steers on the trumpet.

Posted on by David Steers

Carols by Candlelight at Dunmurry

Despite the presence of Storm Darragh on Friday, 6th December we still were able to hold our well-attended service of Carols by Candlelight featuring Harmonic Sounds Concert Band under the direction of Paul Hamilton. It was a great evening and the whole service was livestreamed. You can watch the service here:

Click on the video

The service was conducted by the minister, Rev Dr David Steers, and our readers came from our own Church and our sister churches. They were David Kerr (First Church, Belfast), Kathy Yuille, Sylvia McBride, Adele Johnston, Diana Taggart, Erin Black, Rev Chris Hudson (All Souls’ Church, Belfast), Gilbert Cameron, Rev Chris Carson (Church of Ireland).

Band about to play

The Church was beatifully decorated both outside and in.

And many of those present were able to come over to the Hall for refreshments after the service.

Posted on by David Steers

Carols by Candlelight at Dunmurry

Harmonic Sounds Concert Band performing at Dunmurry

On Friday, 15th December we were delighted to welcome to Dunmurry Harmonic Sounds Concert Band under their Musical Director, Paul Hamilton to lead us in our service of Carols by Candlelight. The Church was beautifully decorated, there was a great attendance and readings were given by members and friends of the congregation.

Click on the video above to share in the service.

Order of Service

Another recent video which is available to view online is the sermon delivered in Church on Sunday, 10th December 2023, the second Sunday in Advent:

Posted on by David Steers

Carols at Dunmurry

Every Christmas Carol has its own backstory but there is none more intricate and unusual than O Come, all ye faithful, which is also one of the most universally popular of all Carols.

Adeste Fidelis

Click on the video above to see the Reflections on ‘O Come, all ye faithful‘

Carols by Candlelight

At Dunmurry we are really looking forward to our Carols by Candlelight service on Friday, 15th December at 7.30 pm when we will welcome Harmonic Sounds Concert Band with their Director of Music, Paul Hamilton. We will tell the story of Christmas through traditional carols and the traditional Christmas readings given by church members and friends from other churches. Everyone is welcome.

Posted on by David Steers

Christmas Service of Carols and Readings

If you can’t get to church on Sunday amidst all the current restrictions or, indeed, if you have been to church but would like to join in another Christmas service, you can click on our video and join in our Service of Carols and Readings.

Filmed partly in Downpatrick it features music played on the organs at Ballee and Downpatrick plus music on the trumpet and bagpipes as well as readers from different churches who re-tell the Christmas story.

Click on the video to see the service:

Service of Christmas Carols and Readings, Downpatrick

Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church

First Presbyterian (NS) Church, Downpatrick

Christmas Carol Service

Sunday, 20th December 2020

  1. O Come, O come, Emmanuel (played by Jack on the trumpet)
  2. Opening Words Rev Dr David Steers
  3. 1st Reading Isaiah ch.9 v.2, 6-7 Nigel
  4. 1st Carol O Come, all ye faithful (played by Laura on the bagpipes)
  5. 1st Carol O Come, all ye faithful (played by John on the organ at Ballee)
  6. 2nd Reading Isaiah ch.11 v.1-9 Margaret
  7. 2nd Carol O little town of Bethlehem (John)
  8. 3rd Reading Isaiah ch.40 v.1-5 Rosemary
  9. 3rd Carol Once in Royal David’s City (John)
  10. 4th Reading Luke ch.1 v.26-35 Adele
  11. 4th Carol The first Nowell (played by Laura on the organ at Downpatrick))
  12. 5th Reading Matthew ch.1 v.18-25 Emma
  13. 5th Carol Mary’s Boy Child (Laura)
  14. 6th Reading Luke ch.2 v.1-7 Emma
  15. 6th Carol Silent night! (John)
  16. 7th Reading Luke ch.2 v.8-20 Noelle
  17. 7th Carol See amid the winter snow (Laura)
  18. 8th Reading Matthew ch.2 v.1-12 Mary
  19. 8th Carol Hark! The Herald Angels sing (John)
  20. 9th Reading John ch.1 v.1-14 Robert
  21. Prayer
  22. 9th Carol Joy to the world (Laura)
  23. Benediction
  24. A Great and Mighty Wonder (John)

O thou eternal Wisdom, whom we partly know and partly do not know;

O thou eternal Justice, whom we partly acknowledge, but never wholly obey;

O thou eternal Love, whom we love a little, but fear to love too much:

Open our minds, that we may understand;

Work in our wills, that we may obey;

Kindle our hearts, that we may love thee.

Amen

Posted on by David Steers

The true story of ‘Silent Night’, in Faith and Freedom

In the latest issue of Faith and Freedom Andrew Page tells the true story of the famous carol Silent Night and gives a new and entirely faithful translation of the hymn.

Christmas Ballee Candlelight December 2009

Andrew Page writes:

“We are all familiar with Silent Night – or, at least, we think we are. We know the famous tune, we can recite the familiar English words, we might even know the tale of the church organ and the mice – whose supposed gnawing through the bellows necessitated the writing of a new carol played by guitar.

Familiarity, however, does not necessarily lend itself to understanding. To understand the meaning of Silent Night the first thing that must be done is to strip away the myths. Myths inevitably point us towards truth – real, deep and meaningful truths, that a mere retelling of the facts never could. However, when a mythologised version of events becomes widely accepted as historical truth, it must be challenged.

A myth is a story that never was, but always is. And so it is with the myth of Silent Night. The traditional story tells us of how hungry church mice had eaten a hole in the bellows of the church organ in Oberndorf. The damage was discovered in Christmas Eve, just a few hours before the young priest, Father Mohr, was due to lead Midnight Mass. Attempts were made to find a means of repairing the organ, but these efforts proved unsuccessful. As Mohr’s congregation would need something to sing, and with the organ out of commission, the priest was inspired by a pastoral visit he had carried out earlier in the day, to a mother and her sick baby. He penned the now world-famous words, and then ran to his friend Franz Gruber – a schoolmaster and organist – to ask him to quickly compose a tune. When a man arrived after Christmas to repair the organ, he was so impressed with the new composition that he passed it on to the Strasser family, a travelling group of musicians and singers very similar, I assume, to the Von Trapps of Sound of Music fame. The Strassers later published it and the rest is history.

Or is it?….”

From ‘The Story of Silent Night’ by Andrew Page published in Faith and Freedom, AUTUMN AND WINTER 2019 (Volume 72, Part 2) issue 189

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Faith and Freedom Cover 2019