The Meaning of Christmas

At our Festival of Lessons & Carols last Sunday, Mariama gave an address on the meaning of Christmas, which you can listen to by clicking on the button below.

This beautiful service was based around nine Bible readings interspersed with Christmas hymns and carols sung by St James’s Lay Singers and Music Scholars. You can watch the full service by clicking on the button below.

There were 9 readings from members of the congregation:

The Coming (RS Thomas) read by Leah Hoskin
The angel Gabriel visits Mary (Luke 1.26-38) read by Sonia Lee
Annunciation (Kathleen Norris) read by Cornell Jackson
Talking about God (Alice Codner) read by Venetia Iga
The Birth of Jesus (Luke 2.1-15) read by Ben Mariam
The Soul’s Deepest Desire (Hugh St Victor) read by David Matthews
The Purity of Angels (Brian O’Leary) read by Akin Taiwon
Iona (Sarah Legrand) read by Kate O’Neill
The Word of God (John 1.1-14) read by Trevor Lines

The following hymns were sung by our Lay Singers and Music Scholars:

Adam Lay Ybounden (Boris Ord)
Gabriel’s Message (arr. Edgar Pettman)
Jesus Christ The Apple Tree (Elizabeth Poston 1905-1987)
The Lamb (John Taverner 1944-2013)
Coventry Carol (Traditional)
Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day (John Gardner 1917-2011)