Christmas Around the World

At the Austrian church in 1818, the broken organ threatens to leave the Christmas Eve service without music. Then Franz, the church organist and a local schoolteacher, arrives with a new composition. Joseph Moore had written a poem after walking through the still mountain landscape the previous night, and Franz has spent the day setting those words to music.

Since the organ cannot be used, Franz accompanies the singers on his guitar. Sam instantly recognizes their gentle new carol as “Silent Night.” The travelers have witnessed the song at its beginning and now understand how a broken instrument helped shape the way it was first performed.

The Imagination Station next carries them to a cold town square in Poland, where a shopkeeper welcomes everyone indoors. Polish songs proclaim that Christ has been born, celebrate the coming dawn, and invite shepherds and all people to worship him. Sam enjoys the music but notices that every place they have visited so far has been in Europe.

Their journey turns toward China. A Chinese carol tells of the light over Bethlehem, the angels’ message, and the child who has come to save the world. Other familiar Christmas hymns follow in the musical style of the local people. Tom explains that missionaries often carried Christian songs into the countries where they served, and those communities made the songs their own.

In another part of the world, the travelers hear a lively new arrangement of “Joy to the World.” The familiar words remain, but the different rhythm and style show how one message can be celebrated through many cultures. The music belongs not only to the country where it began but also to all who sing it with faith and joy.

The group then joins a Posadas celebration in a Latin American community, probably in Mexico. Eugene explains that during the eight nights before Christmas, friends reenact Mary and Joseph’s search for shelter. On Christmas Eve they travel from house to house, singing and asking to be admitted.

Their hosts make them sing before opening the door. Once the carols are finished, everyone is invited inside for a party where blindfolded children try to break a piñata filled with toys and candy. Sam is eager to join the fun, but Tom says that their most important stop still lies ahead.

The journey ends much closer to home at the Odyssey Nursing Home. George Barclay and a group of children are decorating a Christmas tree and singing for residents who cannot attend church or visit their families. George introduces carols written by Alfred Burt as Christmas greetings for relatives and friends, including songs about preparing both a home and a heart to welcome Christ.

As the children arrange a Nativity scene, they sing about people in different places picturing Jesus with features familiar to them. Whatever their appearance or homeland, they come to worship the same infant King and offer him their love. Mr. Chapman thanks the visitors for bringing the light of Christmas to the nursing home.

Sam and Erica return with more than enough material for their school report. Sam wishes that the Imagination Station could help with all his homework, but Tom reminds him that he always carries an imagination of his own. Surrounded by the nursing-home residents and their friends, the travelers join one final celebration of the Savior whose birth has brought hope around the world.