Festival of Lessons and Carols to be Held Dec. 4

The Converse Chorale performs in Twichell Auditorium during the 2002 Festival of Lessons and Carols.

Converse College and the Upstate community will enjoy a beautiful holiday tradition when the annual student-led Festival of Lessons & Carols is held in Twichell Auditorium, Dec. 4 at 8 p.m.

Festival of Lessons and Carols has become a favorite tradition for those at Converse as well as in the community. The Converse Chorale, under the direction of Dr. Susan Lyle, will perform and lead the congregation in singing traditional carols and hymns between verses of the Christmas story, which will be read by Converse students. Local alumnae will gather for Christmas cheer in the lobby of Wilson Hall prior to the service.

Luminaries, which were purchased for $5 in memory of or in honor of a loved one or friend, will adorn the front campus grounds on the night of the service. “All proceeds from luminary sales will benefit the food pantry program of the Bethlehem Center,” said Christine Henchar Reed, Chaplain at Converse.

The Festival of Lessons and Carols was first held on Christmas Eve 1918 at King’s College, a constituent college of Cambridge University, England. It was planned by Eric Milner-White, who at the age of 34 had just been appointed Dean of King’s after experience as an army chaplain which had convinced him that the Church of England needed more imaginative worship.