A Holy, Jolly Christmas

This entry is part of a series of blogs that present ways that familiar Christmas music, both secular and religious, can enlarge our Spirits and deepen our exploration of the Advent and Christmas seasons.

If I were to name my all-time favorite Christmas carol, it has to Holly Jolly Christmas. There are lots of versions, including a new jazzy one by Michael Bublé that I love.  But there is something about the old version with Burl Ives’ appealing, homespun voice, background singers and the plink of his banjo that brings a smile to my face and a lift to my heart no matter how many times I’ve heard it–and believe me, I’ve heard it a lot.  Whatever I’m doing, wherever I am, I always stop and sing along when this song comes around on my all-Christmas satellite radio station.   I can dredge up some dim memories of Burl Ives himself, who looked like a country version of Santa Claus.  Maybe it was a touch of the old elf inside of him that gave this song its special appeal or Ives’ rotund figure and twinkling, mischievous eyes.  It was a Holly, Jolly masterpiece (and a Hit song as well) for that jolly old Santa-in-disguise.  There is nothing much to this little song.  It has only a couple of verses and even by throwing in a brief musical bridge and an extra chorus, it still only runs to two minutes, tops. Yet, it captures the ebullient joy and spirit that I always associate with Christmas: people greeting each other on the street; lovers stealing a kiss under the mistletoe; and its description of the best time of the year.  A Holly Jolly Christmas doesn’t require snow, or much of anything but a few sprigs of mistletoe and a busy street, to be perfect. 

Have Holly, Jolly Christmas

It’s the best time of the year

I don’t know if there’ll be snow

But have a cup of cheer

Have a holly, Jolly Christmas

And when you walk down the street

Say hello to those you know

And everyone you meet

Hold on! This blog’s title is NOT a typo.  With just a slight tweak, I add another strand of meaning to this bouncy song. Have a Holy, Jolly Christmas. Bonhomie and memory- making are only a part of Christmas celebrations in this season that is also Holy, set apart and divine. It doesn’t take much to insert a slightly more serious tone into this ditty. It isn’t a big stretch to look for the Holy in those festive decorations or busy street corners this time of year. Twirling and swirling through the season like a silver strand added to a bright Christmas bow, the sacred lends its touch to any celebrations we may encounter.  What does it means to have a Holy, Jolly Christmas?  When I think about something that is Holy, images of quiet saintliness push their way into the picture of seasonal celebration that the song describes.  Yes, the laughing sounds of jolliness and the devotion of holiness are comfortable side by side.  Holy and jolly: I love this idea of celebrating and laughing all the way through Advent to the holiest of nights, that night of Jesus’ birth.  And when I look at the holy people of the Christmas story, Mary, Joseph, shepherds, angels, Magi, I find a lot of holy happiness embedded in the ancient story. There was even a baby not yet born who leapt with joy upon hearing the amazing news of holiness to come. (See Luke 1: 40-45). Happiness in the midst of holiness is not only possible, but certain.  Holiness is not all about pious faces and strait-laced ceremony.  Devotion is not always found within a sacred space, or only appears in a complicated musical arrangement written by a classical composer.  It can also come in the toe-tapping rhythm of a simple song so relentlessly upbeat that it effortlessly lifts our hearts at a moment’s notice.

Advent is and always will be a Holy time.  But it is also a Jolly time for anyone who has a cup of cheer (Isn’t that a great phrase?). Some experts speculate that the word Holly can also mean Holy, and even though that research is debatable, it is true that the beautiful holly plant has taken on a holy, symbolic meaning for many Christians. From Holly to Holy… From Holy to Jolly… all these meanings add a combination of hilairty and sacredness to this time of year. Even Santa Claus himself, that Jolly old elf of poem and song, first appeared as a real-life Saint, didn’t he? Holy and Jolly blend together in a perfect combination.

I can certainly use a reminder of the Holy, something deserving of reverence, that I can apply to the days and weeks leading up to the Nativity.  And as for those Jolly things? I am surrounded, even engulfed, by those whenever I take the time to listen and look. Where is the Holiness in the Jolliness and the Jolliness in the Holy? Inserting the Holy into the Season are my dear family members who are foster parents.  They open wide their home during a busy time to share comfort and joy with some of God’s littlest angels, offering a holy happiness to those in need.  I laugh as a Nativity-themed float inadvertently blasts out Santa Baby on its recorded music as it rolls down the street in our community parade- what a holy jolly mash-up!. And there is surely something sacred in the hundreds of Christmas kisses blown my way via internet by a precious grandson.  Jolly visits on Santa’s knees and bright anticipation of the presents under the tree become a little more Holy when we share our cups of cheer with others.  Packages intended as a part of a Christmas Angels program are that beautiful mix of Holiness and Jolliness, delivered by people who see the holy sacredness in each child’s life.

It is possible to have a Holy, Jolly Christmas, though the words may not rhyme quite as well or slip off the tongue as easily as in Ives’ original tune.  A Holy, Jolly Christmas is one that finds sacred moments in laughter and holy happiness in seasonal festivities.  There are Holy memories and pure joy hidden among the everyday encounters with those we meet. A Holy, Jolly Spirit invades our lives as we invite it in by song or prayer, through an open door, a child’s kiss, a holiday parade or a specially chosen gift… Holy and Jolly things, all.  I pause in my work as one more time, Holly Jolly Christmas lilts into my office via my musical phone App.  I stop and sing along, as I always do.  This time, I change the words just a bit.  I don’t think Mr. Ives would have minded…but since he’s no longer around to ask, I go ahead anyway and make this song my own.

Oh, by golly, Have a Holy Jolly Christmas this year.

Reflection Question:

When and how do you see and hear the Holy and the Jolly during this Christmas season?