Thursday 24 December 2020

When all is said and done...

Photo by Tim Umphreys on Unsplash

...Christmas has not been cancelled. 

At the end of this dark and often difficult year, today we give thanks for the gift of the Christ Child. 

The light that can never be extinguished continues to shine.

Jesus, Light of the World, shines upon us as we celebrate. 

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. (Isaiah 9:2)


Saturday 19 December 2020

A merry little Christmas?

Photo by Sarah Johnston on Unsplash

Christmas is coming. After weeks of speculation, in less than a week we will soon find out exactly what a COVID Christmas looks like. Government policy and personal plans continue to change in response to the reality of rising cases and increased rates of infection. The run up to Christmas Day 2020 has been marked by anxiety rather than anticipation. A merry little Christmas seems the best that can be hoped for at such a time as this.

Much has changed in this year of pandemic. Loss of one kind or another has affected every home, every family, every community. Death and disease have been an ever present reality. Loneliness and isolation have touched us all. The world of work has altered beyond recognition. Keyworkers have been stretched to their limits while others have experienced enforced idleness. Merriment seems somehow inappropriate at such a time as this.

Amid the ongoing public debate about what can or should be done about Christmas, churches everywhere are preparing to welcome the Christ Child. Carols may be sung - outside and socially distanced. The Christmas Story will be shared online, at home, and, in church for those able to get out. Nothing will be as it was last year but, one way or another, the Christmas message will once again offer hope, love, peace, and joy to the world in 2020.








Saturday 12 December 2020

Life, light and hope

Photo by Daniel Schludi on Unsplash

On Tuesday this week the COVID-19 vaccination programme got underway. On a damp and dull December morning at the end of a dark and often miserable year hope was born. Leading the way were two elderly patients in the Midlands. The first, Maggie Keenan, described the vaccination as an early birthday present. This special gift will eventually allow Maggie to spend time with her family again. Both she and Bill Shakespeare, the second recipient, expressed their gratitude to the NHS staff who were treating them on this historic day.

Across the world this Christmas the availability of  COVID-19 vaccine brings hope. Lives will be changed thanks to the skill of scientists and medical practitioners. There is light at the end of this dark and difficult year. 

At Christmas we celebrate God's greatest gift to the world. The birth of Jesus is a sign of hope for all time. A week after Jesus was born Mary and Joseph took him to the Temple to give thanks to God. While there they met Simeon and Anna who recognised the tiny child as the fulfilment of God's promises to Israel. These two devout elderly people could see God was at work in their own time. Like Maggie and Bill, they felt privileged to have been present at what was a significant moment in their nation's history. Both gave thanks to God for the hope born in their hearts that day. 

Centuries later Christians continue to rejoice in the coming of Jesus, Light of the World. This year as we celebrate the gift of new life seen in a tiny child we may also be grateful for the gift of a vaccine. With Simeon and Anna, we turn our eyes to the God who is at work in often unexpected ways and give thanks for the gift of life, light and hope in our own time.


Saturday 5 December 2020

Peace on Earth - can it be?

Photo by Luke Stackpoole on Unsplash

Nationwide coronavirus regulations ended this week. In London the transition from lockdown into Tier Two restrictions brought the re-opening of gyms, swimming pools, restaurants and places of worship. Individuals must now make their own decisions about what it is 'safe' to do at this point in the COVID-19 pandemic. While many welcome the changes, others are anxious about the consequences.

Many churches will re-open for services tomorrow. As we light candles on this second Sunday of Advent we will pray for peace. Each year as Christmas approaches we hear again the promise in the words of the angels proclaiming peace on earth and goodwill to all people. In some years the need claim that promise in prayer seems more pressing than in others.

In 2001, my first Christmas as a Christian minister, we prayed for peace three months after the terror attacks in New York. Anxiety was high as the ensuing 'war on terror' began. In 2008, we prayed for peace as the international banking crisis deepened. Anxiety was rising as a global economic collapse loomed. In 2016 Brexit divided Britain. We prayed for peace and reconciliation in a society at war with itself. 

Christmas 2020 approaches. Soon we will hear again the words of the angels in our bible readings and in the old familiar carols. And together we will pray for the peace that passes all understanding to bring comfort and hope to a troubled and grieving world.

Still through the cloven skies they come,
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats
O'er all the weary world;
Above its sad and lowly plains,
They bend on hovering wing,
And ever o'er its babel sounds
The blessed angels sing.

From It came upon the midnight clear (Edmund Sears, 1849)