An Irish Christmas

By Linda Canup

This Christmas, Celtic folk singer Moya Brennan urges believers to find unity in Christ.

If you don't know her by name, you've at least heard Moya Brennan's music somewhere before—on a movie soundtrack, with her family band, Clannad, or perhaps as a single on a friend's iTunes® collection. Many say her melodies sound ancient, yet most are no more than about 30 years old. But her ethereal voice does make you want to remember the past and search for joy in the present. This is particularly true of her latest Christmas album, An Irish Christmas, which includes both traditional and modern hymns that proclaim the blessings of Christmases past and present.

Family Traditions

This time of year brings back good memories for Moya—particularly those of the holidays in her hometown of Donegal, Ireland. "I remember Christmases just full of love," she says. "It was always a kid time, a child time. And I think that even though we've grown up now, we still... need to go back to our childhood of Christmas." The folk singer believes this perspective makes it easier "to remember the simplicity of what Jesus brought us."

Moya's father owned and performed at a traditional Irish tavern. On Christmas Eve, he would meet the family after midnight Mass, and they would gather around the piano, singing hymns in Gaelic and English late into the night. The next morning it was Mass again—and then, a big turkey dinner. "No matter how many of us were there, we'd put as many tables together as possible so we'd all sit down together."

As one of nine children, Moya and her family had tables peeking out of every room, especially two years ago. "I have a sister who is in Australia and she came back for Christmas," she explains. "And so, we all wanted to be at home for Christmas. The whole lot of us were there, and it was just special."

Peace on Earth

This sense of family togetherness is reflected in Moya's faith in Christ. "The greatest thing that we can do as Christians is show unity within ourselves," she says. Due to her travel schedule, Moya visits many different churches. "I end up going to a Baptist church or a Presbyterian church—even the Catholic Church," she explains. "And if I go home to Donegal, I'll go down and sing in my Mum's choir because I think that's what God asks us to be as Christians."

She doesn't like to see Christians bickering about the non-essentials of the faith, or complaining about how different churches worship. "We're searching for the perfect church," she says, "[but] there's no such thing. And when we realize this, maybe we'll realize the most important thing is [our] walk with the Lord."

Handing Down the Faith

Her own walk with the Lord has had its rough moments over the years, but she knew where to turn in those times because of a childhood spent in church. "I was brought up as a Catholic, but thank God I was brought up in a church where I got to know God—that's what's important," she says. "I really cry out for parents [who] don't bring the kids to any kind of Mass or church or anything." Moya feels children who go without early intervention from their church and parents won't have a proper knowledge of God to fall back on when they face a crisis.

She and her husband take their children to a Protestant church near their home in Dublin. All of them are involved in ministry at the church in some capacity. Moya sings in the choir and her daughter leads worship for her Sunday school group. As a mother, Moya "sings" the praises of her congregation: "It's a great church, and it's been an amazing church for my children."

Passing On the Music

Faith isn't the only thing Moya has bequeathed to her kids—they've inherited her love for music as well. Just as melodies filled Moya's home when she was young, her house now hums with harmonies too. "[My daughter] plays a mean guitar, but she also plays piano, the Irish pipes, and the whistle. And she's a lovely singer. And then, my son plays the fiddle and the boron, which is the Irish drum. He also plays the piano and is a lovely singer too." They joined Moya on her recording of the Gaelic version of "Silent Night" on An Irish Christmas.

It's wonderful when parents instill a great love and appreciation for music in their children—oftentimes the kids can then respect different forms of it as Moya does. For instance, when it comes to worship styles, she's flexible, "Some people might like a quiet church; some people might like a crazy church, a charismatic church, an outdoor church." But that's okay with her because, "we're all so different. So, how could we possibly worship and love God the same way? We're not meant to."

That's certainly an attitude worth upholding during this holy season. May we always worship the Lord in such Christian unity.