Thirty-four members of the University community and the St. Ignatius of Loyola parish, singing and reading in six languages, recounted the Christmas story in Gaudete in Carminibus (“Rejoice in Songs”), December 12 in St. Ignatius Church. In a talk beforehand, conductor Daniel Gostin ’09 spoke about the origins of the celebration’s format, a “Festal Service” for Christmas Eve consisting of nine lessons and nine carols, conceived by Anglican bishop Edward White Benson and first celebrated in 1880. The program began with lessons from Genesis, read in Latin, and finished with the opening passage of the Gospel of John, in Italian. Following the ninth reading and accompanying carol, the audience joined the chorus and the 13-member musical consort for “Silent Night,” singing each verse in a different language. Over the course of the evening, English, French, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, and Spanish were represented.
Gostin and Romance languages and literatures Ph.D. student Ana Conboy (who sang soprano in the choir) codirected the event, which was organized by the student language groups La Maison Française and La Casa Hispánica, with support from the department of Romance languages and literatures, the office of residential life, and the St. Ignatius music ministry.