The 111th Annual Christmas Carol Services

Date: 

Thursday, December 24, 2020, 5:00pm to 6:00pm

Location: 

Online

Sanctuary of the Memorial ChurchThe 110th Annual Christmas Carol Services will be held online on Thursday, Dec. 24 at 5 pm. This year's service will be online, accessible on our website homepage and on our YouTube Channel. Admission is free; an offering for charity is collected for to Y2Y Harvard Square youth homeless shelter and the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter for adults.

The Annual Christmas Carol Service, sung by the Harvard University Choir, is America’s oldest carol service. In 1910, the newly appointed University and Choirmaster, Archibald T. Davison, and Plummer Professor of Christian Morals, Edward C. Moore, devised the first annual Christmas Carol Service for Harvard University. The liturgy they prepared has remained virtually unchanged since: three lessons from scripture, interspersed with choral and congregational carols, beginning with “Adeste, fideles” sung in Latin. Over a century later, this service continues to be a cherished part of the festive season for the Harvard and Cambridge communities, even in these challenging times.