The beloved Christmas carol that’s not about Christmas

One of the greatest Christmas carols involves the contributions of three men, with the first two working independently of each other. The first was the great 17th-century British hymn writer Isaac Watts. The second was the great 18th-century German-British composer, George Frideric Handel. The third was an American musician who later married a poem by Watts with music by Handel and gave us one of our most beloved Christmas Carols, “Joy to the World.”

Many years ago, I went to England to videotape some things for Christian television.