Editing Nine Lessons and Carols (section)

==History==
[[File:Edward Benson.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Edward White Benson]], credited with devising the service of Nine Lessons and Carols in 1880]]
[[File:Order of Service for Nine Lessons and Carols 1880.JPG|thumb|upright|Order of Service for the first Nine Lessons and Carols in 1880 on display in [[Truro Cathedral]]]]
Although the tradition of Nine Lessons and Carols is popularly associated with [[King's College, Cambridge]], its origins are attributed to [[Truro Cathedral]] in [[Cornwall]]. Up to the late 19th century, the singing of Christmas carols was normally performed by singers visiting people's houses, and carols — generally considered to be secular in content — had been excluded from Christian worship. In the [[Victorian era]], the rising popularity of [[hymn|hymnody]] encouraged church musicians to introduce carols into worship. An 1875 book of carols, ''Carols for Use in Church During Christmas and Epiphany'' by Richard Chope and [[Sabine Baring-Gould]], was an influential publication. At around this time, the composer and organist [[John Stainer]] was compiling a collection, ''Christmas Carols New and Old'', and during Christmas 1878 he introduced carols into the service of [[Choral Evensong]] at [[St Paul's Cathedral]] in London.{{sfn|Dibble|2017|p=399}} Other cathedrals also began to adopt carols at [[Christmastide]] that year and the ''[[Royal Cornwall Gazette]]'' reported that the choir of Truro Cathedral would sing a service of carols at 10:00&nbsp;pm on Christmas Eve:

{{Blockquote|The Choir of the Cathedral will sing a number of carols in the Cathedral on Christmas Eve, the service commencing at 10pm. We understand that this is at the wish of many of the leading parishioners and others. A like service has been instituted in other cathedral and large towns, and has been much appreciated. It is the intention of the choir to no longer continue the custom of singing carols at the residences of members of the congregation.|source=''[[Royal Cornwall Gazette]]'', 20 December 1878<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Christmas at the Cathedral |url=http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000180/18781220/039/0004 |newspaper=Royal Cornwall Gazette |location=Falmouth |date=20 December 1878 |access-date=18 August 2015}}</ref>}}

Two years later, the Right Rev. [[Edward White Benson]], at that time [[Bishop of Truro]], conducted the first formal service of "Nine Lessons and Carols" on [[Christmas Eve]] (24 December) 1880. Benson, concerned at the excessive consumption of alcohol in Cornish [[pub]]s during the [[festive season]], sought a means of attracting revellers out of the pubs and into church by offering a religious celebration of Christmas. The idea for a service consisting of Christmas music interspersed with Bible readings was proposed by the [[succentor]] of the cathedral, the Rev. [[Somerset Walpole|George Walpole]] (who later became [[Bishop of Edinburgh]]). The cathedral — a [[Gothic Revival architecture|Victorian gothic]] building — was still under construction, and services were being held in a temporary wooden structure which served as a [[pro-cathedral]]. The first Nine Lessons and Carols service took place there at 10:00&nbsp;p.m. on Christmas Eve and was attended by over 400 people.<ref>{{citation|author=Alex Webb|title=Choir that sings to the world|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1703517.stm|work=[[BBC News]]|date=24 December 2001}}.</ref><ref name="guardian-truro">{{cite web |last1=Gray |first1=Christopher |title=How Truro created Christmas musical history |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2013/nov/29/truro-nine-lessons-carols-christmas-history |website=The Guardian |access-date=9 May 2019 |date=29 November 2013}}</ref><ref name="trurocathedral-ninelessons">{{cite web |title=Nine Lessons and Carols |url=https://www.trurocathedral.org.uk/history/nine-lessons-and-carols |website=www.trurocathedral.org.uk}}</ref>

Benson's son, [[A. C. Benson]], later recalled: 
{{Blockquote|My father arranged from ancient sources a little services for Christmas Eve, nine carols and nine tiny lessons. They were read by various officers of the church, beginning with a chorister and ending, through different grades, with the bishop.|author=[[A. C. Benson]]|source=<ref name="bbc-faith-feature">{{cite news|title=Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/content/articles/2005/12/16/faith_nine_lessons_feature.shtml|publisher=[[bbc.co.uk]]|date=16 December 2005}}</ref>}}

Bishop Benson was appointed [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] in 1883, and the Nine Lessons service began to gain in popularity across the [[Church of England]] and the wider [[Anglican Communion]], as well as [[Catholic Church in England and Wales|Roman Catholic]] churches in [[England and Wales]]. The original liturgy has since been adapted and used by other churches all over the world, particularly in English-speaking countries. Lessons and Carols most often occur in [[Anglican]] churches. However, numerous Christian denominations have adopted the service, or a variation of it, as part of their Christmas celebrations. In the UK, the service has become the standard format for school carol services.

On Christmas Eve 1914, [[David Wilson (Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin)|David Wilson]] organised the first service of Nine Lessons and Carols in Ireland in [[North Strand Church (Church of Ireland)|North Strand Church]] in Dublin.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://dublin.anglican.org/news/2014/12/North-Strand-Church-to-Mark-100-Years-of-Nine-Lessons-and-Carols |title=North Strand Church to Mark 100 Years of Nine Lessons and Carols |date=2014-12-24 |website=dublin.anglican.org |publisher=United Dioceses of Dublin & Glendalough |access-date=2024-12-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tcd.ie/Chaplaincy/assets/pdf/Alumni-Carol-Service-2024.pdf |title=CHRISTMAS CAROL SERVICE |date=2014-12-24 |website=www.tcd.ie |publisher=[[Trinity College Dublin]] |access-date=2024-12-22}}</ref> A special carol service was held in 2014 to celebrate the centenary.

In 1916, a service of Nine Lessons and Carols was held at [[Brown University]] in [[Providence, Rhode Island]]; the institution celebrated the 100th anniversary of its Lessons and Carols in 2016.<ref name="brown.edu">{{cite web |title=100th Annual Service of Lessons and Carols {{!}} Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life |url=https://www.brown.edu/campus-life/spiritual-life/chaplains/upcoming-events/100th-annual-service-lessons-and-carols |website=www.brown.edu |access-date=4 October 2019}}</ref>

Notably in 1918, the Rev. [[Eric Milner-White]] the new [[Dean (education)|dean]] of King's College, Cambridge, introduced the service to the college chapel, taking advantage of the established choral tradition of the [[Choir of King's College, Cambridge]]. It proved highly successful, and began an annual tradition — albeit with some alterations to Benson's original format from 1919 onwards. The [[BBC]] began to broadcast the service on the radio from 1928 and on television from 1954, establishing ''Carols from King's'' as the most popular and widely recognised presentation of the service.<ref name="McGrath" /><ref name="guardian-truro" />

In North America, the Lessons and Carols tradition spread to other US and Canadian institutions. In 1928, organist and choirmaster Twining Lynes, introduced the service to [[Groton School]] in [[Groton, Massachusetts]], after being inspired by services in England.<ref name="groton">{{cite web |title=Spiritual Life at Groton |url=https://www.groton.org/student-life/spiritual-life |website=Groton School |access-date=4 October 2019}}</ref>

In Canada, the Festival of Nine Lessons and carols is done multilingually at [[Bishop's College School]], [[Quebec]], with the nine lessons read in nine languages or dialects.

In December 2013, Truro Cathedral staged a reconstruction of Bishop Benson's original 1880 Nine Lessons with Carols Service which was attended by a congregation of over 1,500 people.<ref name="trurocathedral-ninelessons" />