Note: Paul Zirjacks, age 86, is a retired Army veteran who served 30 years and reached the rank of Sergeant Major.
During my U.S. Army career, my late wife, Judy, and I spent many years living and serving in Germany before I retired in 1987.
For three of those final years, we and another couple we traveled with spent the Christmas holidays in Berchtesgaden, Germany, a small tourist town on the Austrian border.
One of the trips we took from Berchtesgaden was just over the border to the small village of Oberndorff for Christmas Eve services. The service was held outside of the small Catholic church where the Christmas song “Silent Night” was written in 1818.
There were few Americans.
It was a mostly European crowd. They arrived in buses that parked at the edge of the village and then walked to the church.
Everyone was dressed warmly for the outdoor service. Everyone sang “Silent Night” in their own language. It was a very moving service.
To this day, whenever I hear “Silent Night” I remember the services on those cold nights.
Memories like these last a lifetime.
Here is the part of the program that was in English, as quoted from my aging printed program from the year 1984:
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Here the song ‘Silent Night’ was sung for the first time 166 years ago (Note: That’s a quote from my 1984 program. It’s now been 204 years.) At this hour we think of the two creators of the heartwarming melody, the teacher Franz Xavier Gruber and the priest Joseph Mohr. Their song is a message to everybody in the world who is of goodwill. We hope you will enjoy this hour with us and wish you a merry Christmas.”
