I wonder sometimes about the words that I sing in religious songs. Many songs that we sing as part of our religious celebrations, we sing many times in kind of a rote mode, not thinking much about what we are really saying. The Christmas carol Silent Night is one such song. Look at the third verse.

Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth "

Just what is meant by those words? What is the subject? What is the verb or action word? We know this was translated from the German original, so the structure might be a little stilted and artificial, in order to make the English fit into the melody, but there indeed is a message there.

How about this. When we say the words “Son of God”, we are addressing the Christ child. We are about to tell Him something.

That something is, “Love’s pure light, radiant, beams from Thy (your) holy face.” The word “beams” is the action word, and “light” is the subject of the sentence. Radiant is an adjective describing the pure light of love that is beaming from the Christ’s face.

I’m not certain about the next line. “With the dawn of redeeming grace” could be attached to the prior sentence, as in, “Love’s pure light, radiant, beams from Thy holy face, (along) with the dawn of redeeming grace.” Or, it could be the beginning of a new sentence which states that the birth of Jesus is accompanying the dawn of redeeming grace. That could also be turned around to say that the dawn of redeeming grace is accompanying the birth of Jesus. In any event, the intent is to say, it seems, that God is extending redeeming grace to mankind through the birth of the Christ child.

This is just my opinion; others may have other opinions. What do you think? Would you care to give your ideas?