Christmas Past is a term that conjures up a lot of images in the mind. In those two words we are instantly reminded of things that are precious to us.

The power of Christmas past is evident in nearly all that we do to celebrate the season. Our music is filled with the golden oldies of Christmas, our decorating yields to even ancient practices of yore, and our foods are traditionally festive and have been so since before we were born.

We love to celebrate in ways that are old, to remember of how Christmas used to be, and to honor the things, places and people of the past. Christmas is, if anything, honored by time and cherished for what it has always been.

Nobody knows that better than Brian Earl, host of the Christmas Past Podcast and author of a new book titled – what else? – Christmas Past.

I’ve been wanting to talk with Brian for a long time. If anyone understands my interest and even slightly obsessive history with Christmas past, it’s Brian Earl. As he says – he’s not a historian, he is a storyteller.

And there are a lot of stories to tell about Christmas of the past.

In this far ranging episode of our own podcast Brian takes us on his Christmas journey. It is a journey that not only started in his childhood but also a journey that deliciously never ends.

Some important links to consider:

Christmas Past Podcast Book (on Amazon) – Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions Book (on Barnes & Nobel) – Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions

Christmas Past and Brian Earl on Social Media:

• Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ChristmasPastPodcast
• Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/173778110150282
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christmaspastofficial/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/XmasPastPodcast

The Baby of Bethlehem is the topic of this very personal episode of the Merry Little Podcast.

We sing of Him in song and celebrate the Nativity as a part of every Christmas – but why?

Based on this sincere question from a listener we discuss the tender mercies of Christmas and the effect it has on the living and the dead.

How does one without faith makes sense of it all? Our listener celebrates the season year round, enjoys great traditions of family and joy, and yet cannot connect the merriment to the manger. He wants to understand without the preachy demands of church.

So we explore why The Baby is Christmas in simple, fundamental terms of truth.

We find that in these hard times The Baby is more relevant and important than ever.

What fascinates the most is that they knew He was coming. His birth was anticipated like no other and that theme of anticipation has carried over to our modern celebrations of Christmas thousands of years later.

But how can we celebrate Him in the shadow of Santa, Christmas trees, snowmen and stockings? We find that it is okay, that each of the elements of Christmas we cherish, even those of a secular nature, can add to the light of Christmas.

This episode features more new music from The Barefoot Movement with a great song titled I Just Wish It Would Snow. Please visit their YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBuoyYzXlguK3jkYjdiA7cQ for more great music.

Also featured is another great Christmas song from Angie Killian and Shawna Edwards. Their work – performed by children – teaches the beauty of the story of The Baby and we’re grateful for it.

This episode also features recent work by Santa’s Sleigh, a merry little outreach effort of the Merry Forums of MyMerryChristmas.com to give back each Christmas. This true story illustrates how the simple principle of anonymous giving elevates the many who focus on the one or the few.

The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square are featured in this merry episode about Christmas in our own backyard.

We are local to Salt Lake City and enjoy a wide variety of Christmas culture. This includes the magnificent downtown venue of Temple Square, home to the Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Temple Square is famously decorated for Christmas and features one of the largest Christmas light displays in the world. It also has stunning Nativity displays and art. The several buildings house crowds of all sizes to accommodate performances from local artists and groups.

The most famous of these groups is the Tabernacle Choir, who has called Temple Square home since the 1860s. They first performed in the still-standing Tabernacle, for which the Choir is named. In their history of touring and regular concerts no other activity by the Choir is as well known as their annual Christmas concert, which is featured on PBS in a nationally aired broadcast every holiday season.

The Christmas concerts by the Tabernacle Choir feature the Orchestra at Temple Square, a hand bell choir, dancers and actors from local companies. Nearly all local performers are volunteers. It is a Choir custom to invite renown guest artists to perform each year.

Past performers include Broadway stars Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Angela Lansbury, Kelli O’Hara, Santino Fontana and Laura Osnes; R&B singer Gladys Knight; the late jazz singer Natalie Cole; pop singer David Archuleta; legendary newscasters Walter Cronkite and Tom Brokaw; historian David McCullough; the Muppets from “Sesame Street”; actors Jane Seymour, Hugh Bonneville, Richard Thomas, the late Ed Herrmann, John Rhys-Davies, Roma Downey, the late Peter Graves, Claire Bloom, Michael York and Martin Jarvis; opera stars Renée Fleming, Deborah Voigt, Frederica von Stade, Bryn Terfel, Nathan Gunn, Alfie Boe, Sissel, Rolando Villazón and four Metropolitan Opera soloists and the London-based a cappella group, The King’s Singers. Collectively, the featured guests have garnered 34 Grammy Awards, 19 Tony Awards, 14 Emmy Awards, 10 Golden Globe Awards, three BAFTA Awards, one Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Olivier Award.

These concerts are a massive effort.

In this merry episode we speak with Scott Barrick of the Tabernacle Choir about everything that goes into getting these concerts produced. This episode features a healthy dose of Tabernacle Choir music and information about a new two-hour holiday special airing on PBS before Christmas.

But that’s not all. In this episode we also hear from two other artists performing on Temple Square – Allie Gardner, who with Wade Farr performs a haunting version of O Come O Come Emmanuel. That song is the oldest Christmas carol on record and we tell its fascinating backstory.

We also share the incredible version of The First Noel performed last Christmas by Bryson and Tierra Jones, a must-hear tear-jerking arrangement of the classic Christmas song by Jared Pierce.

We invite you to see more images and videos of the Tabernacle Choir and Christmas on Temple Square on our website at MyMerryChristmas.com

Notes:

Tabernacle Choir

• DVD – 20 Years with the Tabernacle Choir
• CD – Christmas Best – #1 on Billboard
• Book – Keepsake Christmas Stories: Holiday Stories as Performed with the Tabernacle Choir