One Holy Night in Oberndorf

The church organ was silent for the premiere of the world’s most popular Christmas carol

by ELIZABETH SHERRILL, Contributing Editor

MY HUSBAND AND I were staying in the little village of Oberndorf, Austria, when the letter reached us that December. “You picked the right Christmas to be away!” our friend began. Our church back home—St. Mark’s in Mt. Kisco, New York—he went on, was having the asbestos insulation removed from the heating pipes in its basement. Since the air intake for the organ was also in the basement, this meant that as long as asbestos dust was being created, the instrument could not be played. If the job wasn’t finished by Christmas Eve, our friend continued, he and his wife would have to go to church elsewhere. “Can you imagine the midnight service without the organ?” he wrote. I put the letter on the windowsill and looked across the swirling gray water of the…

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The Joys Of Christmas (Digital) - 1 Issue, 2020

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