Songs Of Hope - Sing We Now Of ChristmasSample

Some Children See Him

Several years ago, I came across “Some Children See Him” by chance or accident as I was researching visuals for the New Testament class that all UMHB students must take. I don’t recall the particulars, but I was seeking images that would illustrate that each Gospel emphasizes a different aspect of Jesus. What I found was a video of James Taylor singing “Some Children See Him.” Taking four to five minutes to watch would be helpful .

When I began to explore more about this carol, I discovered that Albert Burt composed the tune and Wilha Huston, organist for his father’s church, wrote the words. Burt was an American jazz musician who continued the practice of his father, an Episcopal priest, who would send an original Christmas carol each year to family members and congregants. Albert’s father began the tradition in 1920 and, in 1942, asked his son to take over as composer. They worked together until 1948 when the elder Burt died of a heart attack. Albert continued to write what has become known as the “Albert Burt Carols” until he died of lung cancer in 1954. He wrote fifteen carols in all and completed his last, “The Star Carol,” two days before his death. It’s worth a listen as well.

Sixty-six years have passed since Burt-Hutson wrote “Some Children See Him” for the 1951 Christmas card. It reveals a racial inclusiveness that was unusual for that day, three years prior to the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court decision that determined that separate was inherently unequal.

Some people (mistakenly) believe that Christians ought to be color-blind. “Some Children See Him” counters by reminding us that God created a colorful humanity. Relish that diversity.

We each see Jesus through a lens of our own making. Maybe we should see Jesus through a lens of his teaching. The Gospel text for Reign of Christ Sunday on this year’s liturgical calendar (November 26) was Matthew 25:31-46. Verse 40 stands out: “And the king will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me’” (NRSV). For God’s people to feed the hungry, care for the sick, offer hospitality to the stranger is to minister to Jesus. “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to [the “lily white,” the “bronzed and brown,” “the almond-eyed,” and the “dark as they”], you did it to me.

Dr, David Morgan
Adjunct Instructor, Christian Studies
University of Mary Hardin-Baylor