SteveShaw wrote:Redwolf wrote:[It's "Most highly favored lady," actually.
Well I'll be blowed. I've misheard that and sung the wrong flippin' word for decades!
I feel a "misunderstood song lyrics" thread coming on!
I'll put you out of your misery, a chara! Here are the words:
The angel Gabriel from Heaven came,
His wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame;
"All hail" said he, "thou lowly maiden Mary,
Most highly favored lady." Gloria.
"For know a blessed Mother thou shalt be,
all generations laud and honor thee,
Thy Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
Most highly favored lady." Gloria.
Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head,
"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said,
"My soul shall laud and magnify his holy name."
Most highly favored lady. Gloria.
Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ was born
in Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn,
And Christian folk thoughout the world will ever say --
"Most highly favored lady." Gloria
It's actually supposed to be sung for the Annunciation on March 25, but lots of parishes do it at Advent as well.
We've got quite a few "Mondegreens" (misheard lyrics) going in the Irish choir right now, because most of the singers don't actually speak Irish. So we have "Lamb in a lawn chair" (Leanbh sa mhainséar), 'Establish a lawn chair" (Sa Stabla, Sa Mhainséar), and, my personal favorite, "Our mucus" (Ár mBuíochas).
Cowtime, your church is correct to do Lessons & Carols during the season of Christmas rather than before. Strictly speaking, Christmas doesn't begin until sundown on the 24, and ends 12 days later on the Feast of the Epiphany. Before that, technically we're not supposed to sing Christmas carols. We jump the gun a little in our parish because, while we're a very chorally oriented parish, we have only a small volunteer choir, so if we want to do both Lessons & Carols and a choral Midnight Mass (which we do), we need to do Lessons & Carols early. The Sunday after Christmas is a low Sunday in our parish, when our hard-working choir gets a day off, so doing it then isn't an option for us. But it's just as valid to do L&C then, if not more so, if a parish has the resources.
Redwolf
