It is beginning to sound a lot like Christmas. It’s the time of year when people complain that Christmas music comes too early each year. For some, that might mean moaning about Christmas tunes in shops in late October. But for a liturgically inclined person like me, the time for Christmas music is Christmas, which should really not begin before December 24. Advent – its own season with its own ethos, moods, and rites – has its own music. Thus, I used to gripe that we should hold off on “Jingle Bells” and sing “Creator of the Stars of Night.” But in recent years, I have listened a little more closely and have realized that we barely have any Christmas music at all, early or late. We are a culture with too much Advent music.

Most popular Christmas songs are about longing for Christmas.