The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Editorials

December 23, 2007

Our View: Long-ago Christmas truce gives hope today

The Allied troops first saw the lights along German trenches on that Christmas Eve in 1914. Then they heard the words.

Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht

Alles schläft; einsam wacht

Although they might not have known the German language, the British troops knew the song. They responded to hearing “Silent Night” by singing carols in English that crossed the strip of land dividing them from the enemy.

And on Christmas Day the British troops learned the flickering lights they’d seen the previous night were burning candles on fir trees. Before long, the two groups of soldiers were exchanging holiday greetings, sharing candy, cigarettes and photos.

A Christmas truce had broken out.

The account of this temporary patch of peace in World War I has been repeatedly retold in word and song and has even been dramatized this year by the Theatre Latté Da and Cantus in Minneapolis.

The story is so powerful because it touches at the humanity of us all and captures the spirit of the season. Even during a time of war, a desire for peace and brotherhood is at the root of our existence.

Historians say the circumstances were unique in 1914 when the soldiers crossed the no-man’s land that divided their battlefields. And no one is so idealistic to think that peace can come easily — no matter how brief — in complicated wars.

But the 93-year-old anecdote gives us hope. Hope that the goodness in mankind can surface repeatedly today and in the future. Hope that our loved ones can forgive our mistakes and tap the songs in our souls. Hope that our world leaders can find the courage to sing the first note to the enemy.

It’s a wish bestowed on the Christ child that all of us hope for our own children and grandchildren:

Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh.

Sleep in heavenly peace.

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