Midnight Mass Homily from Cathedral Broadcast
Midnight Mass live from Clifton Cathedral was broadcast by BBC Radio 4.
This is Cathedral Dean, Canon Robert Corrigan's homily.
And so finally it's Christmas Day. Our Advent waiting is over. And at last the tills go silent if only for a moment, and even online shopping pauses briefly. Instead the noise is that of celebration. As we finally add in the last verse of O come all ye faithful "Ye Lord we greet thee, born this happy morning".
But I think there's another side to the rejoicing coin, and its one which a good number of people can feel, which can't be overlooked. If I'm honest I've felt it myself. There's almost a sense of relief, when "finally its Christmas Day" is said not as something to rejoice about but because it¹s almost over. It's as though in the rush of our every day life the mystery we are celebrating has become obscured and the song is muted.
But it was much the same when Christ was born. The dreams and longings of the prophets had become dulled and still, nobody noticed the tired couple begging for a room, a husband fraught with anguish over his oh so young wife, thankful that the journey was almost over.
But this family was to be the one where in hope was born again, where light would banish shadow, where those enslaved in whatever way would find release. There in the city of Bethlehem a new age dawned, not with a perfect text book neatness but in the middle of a city in turmoil, where promises of hope had almost been forgotten. There and then God began a new conversation with humanity in the word made flesh, and here and now we celebrate that this conversation continues still in the midst of all the weaknesses and questions of our age.
As the writer of the letter to the Hebrews says "In the past God spoke to our ancestors though the prophets... but in our own time he has spoken to us though his Son". And that conversation has only just begun. We need to hear its message again and invite more people to be embraced in its mystery. Because God's wish isn't simply to speak at us, for us to sit back and passively listen but God in Christ wants to hear our reply. Wants to hear our joys but also our sorrows, our rejoicing but also our pleas, because in Christ God has become one like us in all things but sin.
The conversation begun at Bethlehem isn't just with the mighty, with the focus group or those who have the right answers. God though his Son wishes to have a conversation with us, with you and with me, with the wise men from the east but also with the outcast and the shepherd, with the traveller and the stranger. And through that conversation God wishes to guide and enrich us all, wherever we are on our journey.
Are we willing to listen when God in Christ is speaking? Because the child of Bethlehem will speak challenging words as well as words of comfort. There is no room for selective reading of the Gospels. And at times God's conversation with us will take place through the unexpected and possibly the unwanted.
And are we willing to help others hear what Christ is saying? It's "Joy to the world", not just to those who know what to listen out for. It's a message that unites all those who seek God with a sincere heart. A message that proclaims hope even when heart breaking headlines reveal human life being valued so cheaply so often.
Maybe at times we are too quiet about the mystery of God, the mystery which makes us and all creation whole the mystery with its still small voice challenging us now to get rid of anything that divides us, the yoke, the bar, the footgear of battle. In how many places tonight will man at war with man still not hear the angel's song of peace and goodwill?
Is it all a bit overwhelming? I don't believe so because Christ is in our midst. But the solution to the greatest problem will begin with the smallest action, the most difficult of
conversations with the first word. And what should our first step be? As the angels call says throughout the years. "Listen".
For having listened, we can then echo in so many different ways the words of Handel¹s Messiah "Behold I tell you a mystery" - not a mystery removed from everyday life but one which embraces us as we are now touching the life of the world.
God, born as weak and frail as one of us so that even in our weakness we can be strong. This is our joy, our hope, our message. With who and how are we going to will share it?
Useful URL : http://www.cliftoncathedral.org.uk
And so finally it's Christmas Day. Our Advent waiting is over. And at last the tills go silent if only for a moment, and even online shopping pauses briefly. Instead the noise is that of celebration. As we finally add in the last verse of O come all ye faithful "Ye Lord we greet thee, born this happy morning".
But I think there's another side to the rejoicing coin, and its one which a good number of people can feel, which can't be overlooked. If I'm honest I've felt it myself. There's almost a sense of relief, when "finally its Christmas Day" is said not as something to rejoice about but because it¹s almost over. It's as though in the rush of our every day life the mystery we are celebrating has become obscured and the song is muted.
But it was much the same when Christ was born. The dreams and longings of the prophets had become dulled and still, nobody noticed the tired couple begging for a room, a husband fraught with anguish over his oh so young wife, thankful that the journey was almost over.
But this family was to be the one where in hope was born again, where light would banish shadow, where those enslaved in whatever way would find release. There in the city of Bethlehem a new age dawned, not with a perfect text book neatness but in the middle of a city in turmoil, where promises of hope had almost been forgotten. There and then God began a new conversation with humanity in the word made flesh, and here and now we celebrate that this conversation continues still in the midst of all the weaknesses and questions of our age.
As the writer of the letter to the Hebrews says "In the past God spoke to our ancestors though the prophets... but in our own time he has spoken to us though his Son". And that conversation has only just begun. We need to hear its message again and invite more people to be embraced in its mystery. Because God's wish isn't simply to speak at us, for us to sit back and passively listen but God in Christ wants to hear our reply. Wants to hear our joys but also our sorrows, our rejoicing but also our pleas, because in Christ God has become one like us in all things but sin.
The conversation begun at Bethlehem isn't just with the mighty, with the focus group or those who have the right answers. God though his Son wishes to have a conversation with us, with you and with me, with the wise men from the east but also with the outcast and the shepherd, with the traveller and the stranger. And through that conversation God wishes to guide and enrich us all, wherever we are on our journey.
Are we willing to listen when God in Christ is speaking? Because the child of Bethlehem will speak challenging words as well as words of comfort. There is no room for selective reading of the Gospels. And at times God's conversation with us will take place through the unexpected and possibly the unwanted.
And are we willing to help others hear what Christ is saying? It's "Joy to the world", not just to those who know what to listen out for. It's a message that unites all those who seek God with a sincere heart. A message that proclaims hope even when heart breaking headlines reveal human life being valued so cheaply so often.
Maybe at times we are too quiet about the mystery of God, the mystery which makes us and all creation whole the mystery with its still small voice challenging us now to get rid of anything that divides us, the yoke, the bar, the footgear of battle. In how many places tonight will man at war with man still not hear the angel's song of peace and goodwill?
Is it all a bit overwhelming? I don't believe so because Christ is in our midst. But the solution to the greatest problem will begin with the smallest action, the most difficult of
conversations with the first word. And what should our first step be? As the angels call says throughout the years. "Listen".
For having listened, we can then echo in so many different ways the words of Handel¹s Messiah "Behold I tell you a mystery" - not a mystery removed from everyday life but one which embraces us as we are now touching the life of the world.
God, born as weak and frail as one of us so that even in our weakness we can be strong. This is our joy, our hope, our message. With who and how are we going to will share it?
Useful URL : http://www.cliftoncathedral.org.uk
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