University of Richmond to Host 46th Annual Candlelight Festival of Lessons and Carols

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UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND — The Annual Festival of Lessons and Carols will take place on Sunday, Dec. 8th in the Cannon Memorial Chapel. Two services will be offered at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Prelude music by the James River Singers will begin 20 minutes before each service and singers of Schola Cantorum and Women’s Chorale will perform a variety of Christmas carols and anthems. Services will conclude with the singing of “Silent Night” and the lighting of candles by the congregation.

This Christmas celebration is in the tradition of the “Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols,” which was first held at King’s College Chapel in Cambridge, England on Christmas Eve 1918.

The event, which is a partnership between the Office of the Chaplaincy and Department of Music, is free and open to the greater Richmond community.

Guests attending the 5 p.m. service are encouraged to arrive early in order to secure seats as this service typically reaches capacity. 

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