Christmas Memory
The classical (or neo-classical) approach to homeschooling stresses the importance of memory work during the first stage, the “grammar stage,” of education. Fill those absorbent young minds with lots of good stuff, then teach them to evaluate and write about it in later stages.
But during this Christmas season, I’ve been struck by how much effortless memory work takes place as a matter of course. A few examples:
The opening of Steven Curtis Chapman’s Christmas album, where his adopted daughter Shaohannah recites a passage from Luke 2. My girls, charmed by her young voice and the musical background, now say it along with her. They have the whole Christmas story memorized — out of pure pleasure. It doesn’t get much better than that.
Handel’s Messiah is all Scripture:
Hallelujah! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth! And he shall reign forever and ever.
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and has redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. Blessing and honor, glory, and power be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, forever and ever.
The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible! And we shall be changed…
Christmas carols:
Thou didst leave Thy throne and Thy kingly crown when Thou camest to earth for me
but in Bethlehem’s inn there was found no room for Thy holy nativity.
Oh, come into my heart, Lord Jesus! There is room in my heart for Thee.
Or this one:
Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
and fit us for Heaven to live with Thee there.
Or this one, a verse from “Hark the Herald Angels Sing.” Listening to the Amy Grant version on cd a few weeks ago in the car, and my daughters pronounced their verdict: “Wow.” Then this last week, my pastor, my friend Ruth, and the Peanuts in their Christmas special, all confirmed a similar verdict.
Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace, hail the Son of Righteousness
Light and life to all He brings, ris’n with healing in His wings
Christ by highest Heav’n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord
Come, desire of nations, come
Fix in us Thy humble home
Come desire of Nations, come! Fix in us Thy humble home!
Even for an oldling like myself, memorization is almost unavoidable (though not always perfect memorization — I had to go back and edit this post because I spliced together two different verses in my rendition of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing!”). I wonder what sorts of things fill my mind at other times of the year? It begins to seem like the conscious effort isn’t to memorize, but to keep from memorizing the things that can be destructive or contradictory to what I know to be true.
