Detailed Summary: The Song from Heaven | English Reader New Gems Class 6 PDF Download

Key Points

• The story takes place in a small village in Austria in the year 1818, during Christmas Eve.
• Father Joseph Mohr, a priest, is preparing for the Christmas service and reflects on the birth of Jesus Christ.
• A peasant woman visits Father Mohr to ask him to bless a newborn baby, which surprises him.
• After visiting the baby and witnessing the joy of the young mother, Father Mohr is inspired to write a poem.
• The next day, music teacher Franz Xaver Gruber visits Father Mohr and creates a melody for the poem.
• They perform the song at church with Gruber's guitar because the organ is broken.
• The song is well-received by the congregation and begins to spread beyond the village.
• An organ builder hears the song and learns it to share with his village, calling it 'Song from Heaven'.
• The Strasser children, known for their beautiful singing, perform the song in a busy city and gain attention.
• The King and Queen of Saxony invite the Strasser children to sing the song at the royal palace.
• The song, now called 'Silent Night', continues to spread worldwide, bringing joy to many.
• During World War I, soldiers from opposing sides sing 'Silent Night' together in a moment of peace.
• Today, 'Silent Night' remains a beloved Christmas carol sung by people around the world.

Detailed Summary

Once upon a time, in a small village in Austria, there was a kind priest named Father Joseph Mohr. He loved Christmas very much and wanted to make it special for everyone. One day, it was Christmas Eve in the year 1818, and Father Mohr was sitting in his study. He was looking for words to say during the special Christmas service. The air was filled with happiness and excitement because everyone was preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Father Mohr opened his Bible and read the beautiful story about the night when a very special baby was born. This baby would bring joy and love to the world. He thought about how this baby was born in a simple manger to regular people, just like the families in his village. As he was thinking about this lovely story, there was a knock on the door. When he opened it, he saw a peasant woman standing there.

The woman said, "Father, I need your help! There is a baby who was born to some peasants, and the parents want you to come and bless their child." Father Mohr was surprised and thought it was a wonderful coincidence that he heard about this baby just after reading about the birth of Jesus. He agreed to go see the baby.

When Father Mohr arrived at the peasants' hut, he found the young mother holding her baby close. She looked very happy and said, "What a blessed day this is, Father!" Father Mohr smiled and said a prayer for the baby, feeling grateful for this moment. On his way back home, he couldn’t stop thinking about how beautiful the scene was, with the mother lovingly cradling her infant.

Later that night, after all the celebrations for Christmas Eve, Father Mohr took out his diary and started to write. The words flowed out of him easily, and before he knew it, he had written a lovely poem. It described the joy of Christmas and the story of the baby Jesus. Father Mohr was very proud of his poem.

The next day, on Christmas Day, a music teacher named Franz Xaver Gruber came to visit Father Mohr. When Father Mohr showed him the poem, Franz took out his guitar and started to play music that went beautifully with the words of the poem. Together, they turned the poem into a song. Father Mohr and Franz decided to sing this new song at church. Since the church organ was broken, they used the guitar to accompany their voices.

The people in the church loved the song. They hummed along and felt really moved by the beautiful words. It was as if the song had a magical power that filled their hearts with joy. A few days later, an organ builder from a nearby village came to fix the church organ. He heard Franz Gruber playing the new song on his guitar and was amazed by how beautiful it sounded.

The organ builder asked if he could learn the song so he could share it with his friends and neighbors. Franz Gruber happily agreed, and that was how the song first traveled beyond the little village. The organ builder taught the song to the children in his village, and they called it "Song from Heaven." Soon, it became popular in many neighboring villages.

As time passed, the song reached the voices of wonderful singers known as the Strasser children from Zillertal valley. The Strasser children—Caroline, Joseph, Andreas, and little Amalie—sang beautifully, and everyone loved to hear them sing. Their parents were glovemakers, and every spring, they traveled to a big city called Leipzig to sell their gloves at a trade fair. The city was large and busy, and sometimes the children felt lost in the crowd.

This particular year, while they were in Leipzig, they felt homesick. To cheer everyone up, Caroline suggested, "Let’s sing!" The others agreed excitedly. They found a corner of the street and began to sing their favorite song, "Song from Heaven." People passing by stopped to listen because their voices were so lovely and the words were beautiful. The crowd grew bigger, and they asked the children to sing again and again.

Among the crowd was an elderly man who was very impressed. After they finished singing, he approached the children and said, "What a wonderful performance! Your voices are amazing!" The man introduced himself as the Director General of Music in the Kingdom of Saxony and invited the children to a concert that evening. They were thrilled to have such an opportunity.

That evening, the Strasser children entered a grand auditorium filled with elegantly dressed people. They felt nervous but excited. After a while, as the last song finished, the Director General of Music walked onto the stage and announced to everyone, "I had the pleasure of listening to the finest voices in the land. Please welcome the Strasser children!" The children were embarrassed but also excited as the crowd applauded for them.

Little Amalie whispered to her siblings, "Let’s just close our eyes and imagine we are singing at home." They nodded, took a deep breath, and began to sing "Song from Heaven." When they finished, the audience was silent for a moment because they were so touched by the song. Then, they erupted into applause, giving the children a standing ovation!

Suddenly, a uniformed man approached the children with a message that the King and Queen of Saxony wanted to speak to them. The Queen smiled and said, "What a beautiful song! We have never heard it before." When they learned it was a folk song, the King asked them to sing it again at the palace during the Christmas service. This was how, in the Christmas of 1832, "Song from Heaven" traveled to the Royal Saxon Court Chapel and captivated everyone there.

From that point on, the song spread far and wide, bringing joy to many people. Even during the dark times of World War I, on Christmas Day in 1914, soldiers from England and Germany sang "Song from Heaven" together in their own languages as a moment of peace in the midst of war. The song brought hope and warmth during a very difficult time.

Today, "Song from Heaven" is known around the world as "Silent Night." It continues to be sung every Christmas, spreading joy and peace to millions of people everywhere. The song is simple yet powerful, reminding everyone of the love and happiness that Christmas brings. The words of the song are:

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright,
Round you Virgin Mother and Child,
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace.

This beautiful song, which began in a tiny village, now lives in the hearts of people all over the world, reminding us of the magic of Christmas and the hope it brings.

Theme/ Message

• The main theme of the story is the power of music and words to bring joy and peace to people's lives.
• The story highlights how a simple act of kindness, like blessing a baby, can lead to something beautiful and meaningful.
• It shows that creativity can emerge from inspiration found in everyday life, like Father Mohr writing a poem after visiting the baby.
• The theme also emphasizes the importance of sharing joy with others, as seen when the song spreads from village to village.
• The message of the story is that love and hope can be expressed through music, transcending barriers and conflicts.
• It teaches us that even small beginnings can lead to something great, as the song started from humble origins but became famous.
• The story reminds us of the importance of community and connection, as people come together to share in the joy of the song.
• Ultimately, it is a celebration of Christmas spirit, emphasizing peace, goodwill, and the uplifting power of music.

Difficult Words

• Devotion: A strong love or loyalty towards someone or something.
• Extraordinary: Very unusual or remarkable; not ordinary.
• Peasant: A poor farmer or laborer of low social status.
• Cradling: Holding someone or something gently in one's arms.
• Transform: To change something into a different form or appearance.
• Accompaniment: Music that goes along with a song or performance.
• Mesmerized: To be completely fascinated or captivated by something.
• Enchanting: Delightfully charming or attractive.
• Auditorium: A large room or building used for public gatherings, especially for performances.
• Thunderous: Very loud, like thunder; often used to describe applause.
• Congregation: A group of people who gather for religious worship.
• Truce: An agreement between enemies to stop fighting for a certain time.
• Resonate: To produce or be filled with a deep, full sound, or to evoke a strong emotional response.
• Uplifting: Something that makes you feel happy or inspired.
• Captivated: Attracted and held the interest of someone completely.