Top Catholic Songs

NOTE: We originally published this post in May of 2017. We submitted this song to Oregon Catholic Press (ocp.org) but it was not accepted.

Jesus Makes Our World So Beautiful is a Christmas song co-written by Dan vi Nguyen, Richard Schletty and André van Haren. Dan posted her lyrics here and asked if anyone could make a song out of her words. Richard Schletty rewrote the lyrics to give them a consistent rhyme, line length, metrical pattern and overall poetic structure. Then Richard came up with a melody. Next, André van Haren wrote a beautiful piano arrangement based on an a cappella recording of the melody by Richard. Using Sibelius, André engraved the sheet music not only for piano and voice, but developed the song fully by adding guitar chords and two additional instruments: flute and cello. He also engraved a version of the song with optional SATB harmonies in the refrain.

VERSE 1
A child is born to Mary through the Spirit,
Surrounded by the warmth of sheep and oxen.
In this humble manger, on this joyful night,
Is the promised one for all generations!

CHORUS
Jesus is the way to peace and joy.
He shows us how to be merciful.
He's the bright star we all need in our lives.
Jesus makes our world so beautiful.

Gerard Faucheux writes:

A few years ago, during midnight mass in Brookhaven, Mississippi, a song was played that just kind of settled in my soul. I don't really remember the melody or the words - just the feeling. Something about the dark church and the sound of the guitar and gentle singing just created something that has never left. During one of my long commutes, ideas started coming, comparing the awesomeness of God with the frailty of a little baby and other paradoxes due to Jesus, the son of God, the 2nd person of the blessed trinity, coming to live as one of us, to die as one of us, to die for all of us. Why? For love of us. I still don't understand this love. Even on my best days, I don't deserve this love. Yet while we were sinners, he died for us. (Rom 5:8) Wow! Thank you, Jesus!

I was thrilled (and extremely nervous) to be able to play and sing this song in my home church, St. Joseph's in Paulina, Louisiana a few years ago. A dark church - midnight mass - the sound of guitar and (somewhat) gentle singing - I hope that someone else was touched and changed the way that I was years before.