THE CAROL THAT RESCUED A FAILING CHRISTMAS
Can a crisis evoke from us a one-shot pinnacle of creativity? In the case of two Austrian villagers exactly 200 years ago, the answer is an emphatic yes. It was in the small church of Oberndorf, Austria, near Salzburg, readying for the gala Christmas Eve service. The all-important pipe organ broke down, with no chance for repairs being done in time. To compensate for the crisis, the young priest Josef Mohr pulled out his poetic text now known as the…