Silent Night

It was December 23, 1818, in the small town of Oberndorf, in the Austrian Alps near Salzburg. That the organ in the small Church of St. Nicholas' wasn't working and would not be repaired before Christmas. (Note: some versions of the story point to mice as the problem; others say rust was the culprit) Because the church organ was out of commission, the assistant pastor Josef Mohr wondered what they could do for the Christmas Eve Service. 
He pondered about the problem that night as he trudged through the forest to visit a woodchopper’s wife who had just had a baby. It was late when he arrived at this humble home & in the light of the fire he saw the young mother with her new born babe. This reminded him of Mary and her Baby who was born in a stable in Bethlehem. On the way home he saw from the hilltop, the peaceful silent snow-covered town. It was so beautiful in the majestic star light of that wintry night. He pondered on the scripture found in.

Luke 2:8-11
⁸ And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
⁹ And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
¹⁰ And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

Words of a poem began to form in Joseph Mohr’s mind: “Silent night, holy night
He decided that these words might make a good carol for the Christmas Eve service just hours away. Even after he arrived home, the words continued to flow. It was almost daybreak when he finished writing them down.
The problem was that he didn't have any music to go with these graceful words. So, after he awoke, Mohr went to see his best friend Franz Gruber, who taught school and played the church organ. Gruber only had a few hours to come up with a melody which could be sung with a guitar. However, by that evening, Gruber had composed the holy music that would complement the poem. They now had a Christmas carol that could be sung without the organ.
On Christmas Eve, the little Oberndorf congregation heard Gruber and Mohr sing their new composition accompanied by the guitar.

Weeks later, well-known organ builder Karl Mauracher arrived in Oberndorf to fix the organ in the old church. When Mauracher finished, he stepped back to let Gruber test the instrument. When Gruber sat down, his fingers began playing the simple melody he had written for Mohr's Christmas poem. Deeply impressed, Mauracher took copies of the music and words of "Silent Night" back to his home in the Alpine village, Kapfing. There, two well-known families of singers — the Rainers and the Strassers — heard it. Captivated by "Silent Night," both groups put the new song into their Christmas season repertoire.

The Strasser sisters spread the carol across northern Europe. In 1834, they performed "Silent Night" for King Frederick William IV of Prussia, and he then ordered his cathedral choir to sing it every Christmas Eve.

Twenty years after "Silent Night" was written, the Rainers brought the song to the United States, singing it (in German) at the Alexander Hamilton Monument located outside New York City's Trinity Church.

In 1863, nearly fifty years after being first sung in German, "Silent Night" was translated into English (by either Jane Campbell or John Young). Today the words of "Silent Night" are sung in more than 300 different languages around the world and is perhaps the most well-known Christmas song.

Stille Nacht (GERMAN) 
1. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Alles schläft; einsam wacht Nur das traute hoch heilige Paar.
Holder Knab' im lockigen Haar, Schlafe in himmlischer Ruh! 
2. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht Lieb' aus deinem göttlichen Mund,
Da uns schlägt die rettende Stund'. Jesus in deiner Geburt!
3. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Die der Welt Heil gebracht, Aus des Himmels goldenen Höhn,
Uns der Gnaden Fülle läßt sehn, Jesum in Menschengestalt! 
4. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Wo sich heut alle Macht Väterlicher Liebe ergoß,
Und als Bruder huldvoll umschloß. Jesus die Völker der Welt!
5. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Lange schon uns bedacht, Als der Herr vom Grimme befreit
In der Väter urgrauer Zeit, Aller Welt Schonung verhieß! 
6. Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht! Hirten erst kundgemacht  Durch der Engel Alleluja,
Tönt es laut bei Ferne und Nah. "Jesus der Retter ist da!