Carols for Christian Aid

Unleash the power of song thisChristmas with our special carol.

Carol resources:

Download resources for our carol fundraiser atcaid.org.uk/christmas- 'When out of poverty is born' sheet music and lyrics- 'When out of poverty is born' videos- Ideas for prayer and worship- Order collection envelopes- Set up a digital fundraiser

'When out of poverty is born', thebeautiful carol written by KathyGalloway, challenges us to rememberamidst our Christmas celebrations, ourneighbours around the world facingpoverty, injustice and climate crisis.

The carol echoes the words of Isaiah,fulfilled through the actions of John theBaptist, to 'prepare the way', calling usto generosity in our Christmas givingand actions that reaches beyond ourimmediate family and friends. It ask usto use the joy and hope that Christmasbrings to imagine a new world for all.

By sharing 'When out of poverty is born' with your church and community throughyour Advent and Christmas worship, carol services, or carol singing, you can standin solidarity with our sisters and brothers facing poverty and injustice. Unleash thepower of song this Christmas by raising your voices with carols for Christian Aid.

Carol singing in your community

Alison Trezise, Sara Millard, and YoTozer-Loft organise annual carolsinging in Sheffield. Alison sharessome of their experiences:

Carol singing to raise money forChristian Aid in Sheffield city centre hasa long tradition - in fact, I can't honestlyremember when It started!

Every year Sara organises a rota ofdifferent church groups and choirs tobring festive cheer to the shoppers inSheffield city centre and I organise arota of willing collectors to hold abucket. We raise over £1000 forChristian Aid but we feel that it is equallyimportant to be a good witness to the

true spirit of Christmas amidst all thecommercialisation: not onlyremembering the humble birth of Jesusbut also our global neighbours living inpoverty, for whom Jesus had a specialaffinity.

And then the pandemic hit and we hadto get creative...

We realised the potential for a virtualcarol singing event, then Yo had thebrainwave of doing an Advent calendarof carols, posting a different carolperformed by a different group everyday during December. You can take alook by searching 'Advent carolsSheffield' on YouTube.

Carolling in Sheffield City Centre has a long tradition.

Switching to virtual carols

Churches and other musical performersrecorded a video of the carol, whichwere posted on our YouTube channeleach day. A Justgiving page wasincluded for donations.

We had the most eclectic collection ofcarols you could imagine, from solosingers bringing us traditional Sheffieldcarols, to a Christmas rap from a URCminister, plus the well known and wellloved carols sung by church choirs. Weraised over £3000 which was amazing! Itwent so well that we're hoping to doboth versions of carol singing in 2021 -the virtual calendar and the in-personsinging.

Sheffield Christian Aid group took their carolsonline during the pandemic.

Tips for your church carol service

Sue Pettit and Jenny Kwee have beenorganising the Big Christmas Sing atTruro Cathedral for 12 years. Here aretheir top tips for your carol service:- Begin planning early and have one ortwo people to take the lead- Focus on the singing! Have lots ofcarols involved including some 'oldfavourites' that everyone can join inwith.- Decide if you are going to have anyguest choirs or singers. We invite somelocal choirs to make the event reallyspecial.- Don't forget to fundraise! Make sureyou have donation envelopes availableso that people can give a gift.

Consider inviting a guest choir to be part ofyour service.

Eng and Wales charity no. 1105851 Scot charity no. SC039150 UK company no. 5171525 ChristianAid Ireland: NI charity no. NIC101631 Company no. NI059154 and ROI charity no. 20014162Company no. 426928. The Christian Aid name and logo are trademarks of Christian Aid. ChristianAid is a key member of ACT Alliance. © Christian Aid June 2019. All photos: Christian Aid. Printedexclusively on material sourced from responsibly managed forests. J112710.

Fundraising at your carol event

At a ServiceTake a collectionOne way to encourage gifts for ourglobal neighbours is to take a churchcollection. Order envelopes atcaid.org.uk/christmas and leave onseats, include in a song booklet, orhand to people as they arrive.Share a story of the impact of ChristianAid's work during your service, and

Sell refreshments or giftsArrange some festive refreshments,such as mince pies, and have themafter the service for a suggesteddonation.If you have some creative members inyour group or church, you could askthem to create Christmas cards orother items that could be sold asChristmas presents.

Take contactless donationsIn a retiring collection, or at the back ofyour church or venue, use a contactlessdonation device so that those withoutcash can also make a gift.Order a contactless device for yourchurch or group atcaid.org.uk/contactless

At public carollingTake bucket donationsEncourage some of your carollers tohave buckets to take donations fromthe public as they pass by. If you'recarolling for a long time, considerhaving a rota of collectors!When planning your collection, ensureyou check with the relevant groups (eg.local council or supermarket chain) thatcollections are allowed.

Encourage people to donate digitallySet up a fundraising page and share aQR code so that people can donateusing their mobile phone. You can alsoorder contactless devices so passers-bycan make card donations.Sign up to create a GiveStar page withChristian Aid at caid.org.uk/contactless

If you need any advice about yourcarol event, or how to fundraise,please contact us at hello@christian-aid.org