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Bethlehem Carols Unpacked: Creative Ideas for Christmas Carol Services

Bethlehem Carols Unpacked: Creative Ideas for Christmas Carol Services

by Martyn Payne (Author), Martyn Payne (Author), BibleLands (Author), Mrs Lucy Moore (Author)

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More Information

Format: Paperback
 Pages: 224
 Publisher: Barnabas
Published: 19 Sep 2008
ISBN 10: 1841015342
ISBN 13: 9781841015347
Children’s book age: 7-9 Years

Media Reviews
From Church Music Quarterly - December 2008 What price good organist/clergy relationships? The answer is simple - it is the cost of this book. Give your clergy this book as a present and he/she will be your friend for life. Putting a new slant on the Christmas story is a perennial problem for clergy and musicians alike, especially when preparing Christmas liturgy for small children and indeed for young people in general. As the subtitle suggests, eleven of the best known carols are 'unpacked', in terms of the story behind the carol, the biblical story of the carol and the meaning of the carol. Biblical links and quotations are also provided. What makes this book so useful is the subsequent 100 or so pages where the authors give creative ideas for using and illustrating the carols by means of poetry, drama and indeed all the human senses. Some of these dramas are quite short and would be suitable for use during a carol service to highlight a particular carol. Others are longer and would make the basis for an all-age talk/ sermon or as an alternative to the traditional nativity story. Many of the dramas use props, mostly home-made or simple to find though a bag of fresh hay might be difficult to find in urban areas in December. There are often sound, visual and other sensory effects together with movement and actions ideal for the young. The imagery used is mainly contemporary with pizza, mobile phones and television all making an appearance. Not being directly based on the nativity story, 'Good King Wenceslas' is a carol sometimes hard to fit into a traditional carol service. Here the authors give useful ways of incorporating this tale of love and generosity into almost any Christmas service. The book is co-authored by BibleLands, purveyor of the well-known Bethlehem Carol Sheet. This is a (150 year old) charity who support a variety of projects in the Middle East and one of the chapters in the book suggests ways in which you might support or raise the profile of their work through the use of carols. I have already given a copy to my vicar, not to curry favour you understand as our relationship is good, but because this is the sort of imaginative use of traditional material that those of us who plan all-age worship so desperately need. Reviewed by John Henderson
Author Bio
Lucy Moore is a professional actor and storyteller. She works for BRF as part of the Barnabas Ministry team. A published writer, performer and creative arts director with a background in teaching languages, she makes use of lively original poetry, mime, storytelling, and a variety of drama workshop activities. Her work with BRF includes sharing the Bible with children through Barnabas RE Days. Lucy is author of The Gospels Unplugged, The Lord's Prayer Unplugged, Topsy Turvy Christmas, Messy Church Messy Church 2 and All-Age Worship all published by BRF. She and her husband, Paul, have two children, Arthur and Judith. They worship at St Wilfrid's, Cowplain in Hampshire, where Paul is the minister. Martyn Payne joined the Barnabas team in January 2003, having worked with CMS as National Children's Work Coordinator for several years. Martyn has wide experience of working with schools and churches to explore ways of opening up the Bible with children. Before his time with CMS, Martyn worked for 18 years as a teacher in East London, leading a modern languages department and being involved in the planning, writing and delivery of RE lessons. Martyn is an experienced workshop leader, Godly Play teacher and speaker and has collaborated with children's advisers and education officers in major school, church and family events across the UK. Based in London, he is available to lead Barnabas RE Days in schools, INSET training, churchbased training sessions and workshops, and to help run special events throughout the UK. Martyn is author of Footsteps to the Feast, The People's Bible and The Big Story, all published by Barnabas.