Christmas Message from Bishop Declan
18 December 2006
“Forgive me”, I heard a woman say the other day, “I’m a bit old fashioned. I still think Christmas has something to do with the birth of Christ.” It is strange that Christ should have to fight for a place at Christmas because without the birth of Jesus, what would we be celebrating? Yet on the first Christmas, there was something of a struggle by Joseph to find a place for Mary and the expected child. In the midst of a bustling Bethlehem, caught up with the rush of a census, there was no room at the Inn. Finding room for Jesus has always been something of a challenge.
What are we celebrating at Christmas? We need to answer that question in some way. Without an answer, our buying and giving of presents, our Christmas dinner and drinks, could be concealing an emptiness. The sad thing is we may not have anything to celebrate. Empty spaces need to be filled and if there is emptiness, it can be filled with arguments and hostile silences.
Hopefully the presents we give and receive celebrate the people of our lives. Those people are important to us and without them our lives would be less than they are. But we also remember those who cannot give us presents because they have nothing materially to give. They too are important to our lives because they are our brothers and sisters. They call forth from us, a love that is generous. In that generosity we grow in our understanding of what it is to be human.
Christmas is about generosity. It is about the generosity of God who sent his Son so that we could find our way to God and to one another. The “no room at the Inn” symbolises the lack of space people give to God and to one another. At Christmas the angels proclaimed: Glory to God in the highest and peace to all people of good will. Christmas opens the way to peace and reconciliation both between individuals and nations. It is possible for people to live in harmony with one another and the whole of creation.
Christianity proclaims that the possibility of harmonious relationships becomes a reality when we do find room for God and for one another. God’s presence in Jesus comes as a light into a darkened world. The darkness is caused by selfishness and exploitation both of people and the environment. Hardened hearts cause prejudice, division and greed. The generous heart of God seen in Jesus enables us to start anew and discover quality relationships in which we flourish as human beings. May this Christmas be for you a time of genuine celebration.
“Forgive me”, I heard a woman say the other day, “I’m a bit old fashioned. I still think Christmas has something to do with the birth of Christ.” It is strange that Christ should have to fight for a place at Christmas because without the birth of Jesus, what would we be celebrating? Yet on the first Christmas, there was something of a struggle by Joseph to find a place for Mary and the expected child. In the midst of a bustling Bethlehem, caught up with the rush of a census, there was no room at the Inn. Finding room for Jesus has always been something of a challenge.
What are we celebrating at Christmas? We need to answer that question in some way. Without an answer, our buying and giving of presents, our Christmas dinner and drinks, could be concealing an emptiness. The sad thing is we may not have anything to celebrate. Empty spaces need to be filled and if there is emptiness, it can be filled with arguments and hostile silences.
Hopefully the presents we give and receive celebrate the people of our lives. Those people are important to us and without them our lives would be less than they are. But we also remember those who cannot give us presents because they have nothing materially to give. They too are important to our lives because they are our brothers and sisters. They call forth from us, a love that is generous. In that generosity we grow in our understanding of what it is to be human.
Christmas is about generosity. It is about the generosity of God who sent his Son so that we could find our way to God and to one another. The “no room at the Inn” symbolises the lack of space people give to God and to one another. At Christmas the angels proclaimed: Glory to God in the highest and peace to all people of good will. Christmas opens the way to peace and reconciliation both between individuals and nations. It is possible for people to live in harmony with one another and the whole of creation.
Christianity proclaims that the possibility of harmonious relationships becomes a reality when we do find room for God and for one another. God’s presence in Jesus comes as a light into a darkened world. The darkness is caused by selfishness and exploitation both of people and the environment. Hardened hearts cause prejudice, division and greed. The generous heart of God seen in Jesus enables us to start anew and discover quality relationships in which we flourish as human beings. May this Christmas be for you a time of genuine celebration.
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