UR to host annual Candlelight Festival of Lessons and Carols Dec. 7
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The University of Richmond Chaplaincy and the Department of Music will hold the 52nd annual Candlelight Festival of Lessons and Carols Sunday, Dec. 7, in Cannon Memorial Chapel on campus.
Services will be held at 5 p.m. and again at 8 p.m.; they are free and open to the public. Tickets are not required, and seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis until capacity is reached. Doors will open one hour before each service, with prelude music beginning 20 minutes before each service.
The services include nine scriptures read by members of the campus community. The University's Schola Cantorum will join local organist Mary Beth Bennett and brass to present new and familiar Christmas carols and anthems in the tradition of the “Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols” that was first held at King's College Chapel in Cambridge, England, on Christmas Eve 1918.
The services conclude with the lighting of candles by the congregation and the singing of “Silent Night.”
“For more than 50 years, this grand Richmond tradition has offered grace and beauty to the campus community and to those in the wider region,” said University Chaplain Rev. Craig Kocher. “The cherished story of peace on earth and goodwill among all people will be shared through lessons, carols, and candlelight once again.”
The Cannon Memorial Chapel is located at 134 UR Drive in Richmond.
