'Let us hope and pray for a better future' - Christmas message from Rector of Mulgrave
Every year at this time we hear the song ‘Merry Christmas Everybody’ by Slade and hear the chorus: ‘So, here it is merry Christmas, everybody’s having fun; Look to the future now, it’s only just begun’.
But, is everybody having fun?
If we look at the conflicts taking place in Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen, Syria, and many other places Christmas hasn’t really been ‘fun’ for them for a long time.
Christmas is a time of hope.
Maybe peace will come to them this year.
People in our towns and villages have been preparing for Christmas much earlier than usual.
We were hardly through the summer when Christmas decorations appeared in gardens and windows everywhere.
Why is that? After all Christmas doesn’t begin until midnight on December 24th .
People have been looking forward to Christmas for months.
It’s almost as if all their hopes and joys are bound up in the festive season.
That can be a good thing because Christmas gives us a chance to party and celebrate with friends and loved ones.
However, it is also slightly sad that the joy and celebrations of Christmas are generally not so evident for the rest of the year.
It is worth considering what it is about Christmas that makes us want to celebrate.
Is it sharing time with family and friends?
Is it the giving and receiving of gifts?
Is it because it gives us something happy to think of for a short time in our otherwise ordinary life?
I remember writing this time last year ‘The message of Christmas is about ‘Emmanuel’ God with us!
Jesus coming into the world to bring the Good News that this world is a Sacred place.
A place touched by God. A place and people loved by God.’
Christmas is a time of hope for all the people and places in our world where love, joy, and peace are lacking.
This Christmas, as Slade sung, we can Look to the future now, it’s only just begun’.
Let us hope and pray that the future is a better one for all people everywhere.
Merry Christmas everybody.