Longfellow’s Christmas Bells

On December 25, 1863, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a grief-stricken father, wrote “Christmas Bells” to express his inner turmoil during the Civil War. He faced personal tragedies, including the death of two wives and his son’s injuries. The poem contrasts despair with hope, ultimately affirming faith in peace and goodness.

updated December 11, 2025

On Friday, December 25, 1863, Longfellow—as a 57-year-old widowed father of six children, the oldest of which had been nearly paralyzed as his country fought a war against itself—wrote a poem seeking to capture the dissonance in his own heart and the world he observes around him that Christmas Day.

Justin Taylor

Christmas Bells

"I heard the bells on Christmas Day"
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet-Graphic from LIGHTSTOCK.COM, an affiliate link

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote prolifically, creating one of the greatest collections of American poetry, depicting the history of the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries. He published his first poem at 13 years old.

Henry’s first marriage ended tragically with his wife Mary’s death from complications of a miscarriage. He sank into suicidal depression after her death.

He found happiness with his second wife, Fanny, with whom he had six children. Again, tragedy struck when she was severely burned by candle wax and died soon after. Henry was burned trying to help her and may have grown his well-known beard to hide the scars on his face.

During the American Civil War, his son Charley fought for the Union; he suffered severe wounds, and his father cared for him until he recovered. During this time, Henry wrote Christmas Bells, which laments that “hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth” but then concludes with

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
     The Wrong shall fail,
     The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”

Henry W Longfellow

Despite, and perhaps due to his family’s medical challenges, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote poetry that touched people’s hearts and minds then and now.

Go here to read The True Story of Pain and Hope behind this beloved Christmas carol.

Christmas tree, statues of old man and a boy
photo by Dr. Aletha

What is Advent?

The season of Advent, which comes from the Latin word adventus meaning “coming” or “visit,” begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year for Christians. [Liturgical — from liturgy, which means the forms and functions of public worship.]

Many families observe Advent with Bible readings, lighting candles, songs, and stories to remind them of the events leading up to the birth of Christ as told in the New Testament. (these are affiliate links for you to consider and help support this blog with a commission on any purchases you make while reviewing)

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Dr. Aletha

Many people find using their phones a convenient way to read and meditate on the Bible. And it’s easy to do so with the Dwell Bible App.

With Dwell you can listen to and read the Bible and special devotional offerings for Advent, Lent, and throughout the year.

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How your health care may change under the new government

The United States voters elected a new president, Donald Trump, and a new legislature in 2016, both Republican. Analysts expect major changes in policy and law after 8 years of Democratic control, especially regarding the ACA, Affordable Care Act (often dubbed ObamaCare)

Since his election, President-elect Trump says there are two features of the ACA he would like to see preserved-(in an interview with Leslie Stahl on  November 13, 2016)

  • Prohibition of insurance denial for pre-existing conditions
  • Covering young adults age 18-26 years old on their parents’ insurance plan

 

the Republican party’s platform on health care.

While similar to the President-elect’s plan, it is broader in scope and more specific.

 

 

The Republican Platform includes:

  • Repeal of the Affordable Care Act
  • Protect insurance discrimination for preexisting conditions as long as continuous coverage is maintained
  • Allow people to buy insurance across state lines
  • Make individually purchased health insurance tax deductible
  • Limit federal spending on Medicaid, allowing the states more leeway in administering the program through block grants
  • Changes to Medicare- providing people under 55 years with a traditional Medicare option or a premium support system of competing plans; raising the age of eligibility for Medicare.

 red, white and blue Republican elephant

 

 

the Democratic Party supports

  • Continue building on the ACA to achieve universal health care
  • Provide a “public option” plan and allow people over age 55 years to buy-in to Medicare
  • Make premiums more affordable and reduce out-of-pocket costs to patients
  • Cap out-of-pocket monthly drug costs
  • Permit importation of lower-priced drugs from other countries
  • Allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices directly with manufacturers
  • Expand funding for community health centers
red, white and blue Democratic donkey

Mr. Levitt is Senior Vice President for Special Initiatives at the Kaiser Family Foundation and Co-Executive Director of the Kaiser Initiative on Health Reform and Private Insurance. He summarizes his review  this way-

“The ACA has increased insurance coverage by 20 million people and is now the status quo in our health care system. Fully repealing it would be very disruptive.

At the same time, the public remains divided on the law, so building on it will also be controversial.”

You can read his full review and  analysis here-

The Partisan Divide on Health Care

Exploring the HEART of health

Dr. Aletha