The little child, "stooped down at Scrooge's keyhole to regale him with a Christmas carol."  Have you ever wondered what the Christmas carol of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol was?  What was the song sung to Ebenezer that caused him to seize the ruler on his desk and threaten the vocalist "with such energy of action, that the singer fled in terror"?

Here's the line that evoked such a reaction from Scrooge:

God bless you, merry gentleman

May nothing you dismay!

Sound familiar?  "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," written by an unknown composer.  During the days of Dickens there were some slight differences in the lyrics.  The message of the hymn is about the birth of Jesus and how that destroys Satan's power.  

But why did Dickens choose this carol to be the carol of A Christmas Carol?

To be continued…