Christmas greetings from the Right Rev Peter Cheyne, as well as the Christmas messge from the World Council of Churches general secretary:
My prayer for you is that your Christmas will have lots of Jesus in it!
It is common for Christians to bemoan the fact that the world seems to have taken Christ out of Christmas. We feel sorry for Jesus when he is ignored on his own birthday, and we remind each other that Jesus is the reason for the season.
There are many phrases attached to Christmas so firmly that they will be used even in secular contexts: peace on earth, goodwill, the Christmas spirit, even “Merry Christmas”. Christmas is associated with generosity and family and love. Relationships are central.
They are great concepts but, where is Jesus? Peace, love, restored relationships, joy, and goodwill are the results of knowing Jesus. To talk of them in isolation is to hold out false hopes.
Isaiah, for example, said, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light”, and went on to talk about joy, rejoicing, freedom and peace (Isaiah 9:2-5). How are these things possible?
“For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given.”
The angel announced to the shepherd “good news of great joy for all people.” The basis for such a proclamation?
“Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)
Peace, joy and freedom are possible only because of Jesus. The Good News is Jesus.
At Christmas, Christians, quite rightly, want to tell people what it is all about. Of course, that is our commission throughout the year as well.
But is there a temptation to talk about the concepts and not the person? We can do more than campaign for peace and encourage reconciliation. We can introduce people to Jesus. We serve our communities in ways that are more than social work when we also take opportunities to help people know Jesus better.
My prayer is very genuinely that your Christmas will be more than a time of good will; that it will be a time of knowing Jesus – and hence, good will. May it be very special for you.
Equally, my prayer is that your loving and serving of others this Christmas, and throughout the year, might lead others to know Jesus better. When we bemoan the forgetting of Christ at Christmas, let’s ensure that we don’t forget him in our “Christian” ministry the other 364 days. There is no greater privilege than helping people to know Jesus.
And, just to let you know, next Lent we are joining together with Presbyterian Support to provide some family-centred worship and study resources. The Prescare project will give an opportunity for both the Church and Presbyterian Support to unite around shared values of caring for children, young people and their families. Ministers and worship leaders will be able to access a specially prepared electronic resource for each of the Sundays in Lent, and a small booklet with 40 day-by-day reflections will be available for congregation members… watch out for these in February.
It is all about Jesus. May it be all about Jesus for you this Christmas and throughout 2011.
May God bless you,
Peter
Christmas message 2010 from the World Council of Churches general secretary
The nativity of Jesus Christ is proclaimed by angelic choirs in the heights of heaven, and the joyous news is echoed afterwards by modest shepherds in fields near Bethlehem. Meanwhile, a mother and father care for their newborn child. No place for this family could be found in the inn, so they shelter among livestock. The circumstances are strikingly humble, yet their infant is the occasion of the angels’ song:
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude
of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom God favours!”
Luke 2:13-14
The splendour of Christmas highlights many contrasts in our surroundings. First of all – it is all about what we are given – surprisingly – by God. This revelation of glory in heaven is given to people living off the land, dependent on simple blessings found in fields and farmyards, in caring for sheep and celebrating a new birth. It is they who first hear the promise of so much more than bare survival or the simplest pleasure. They dare to imagine the real possibility of peace on earth. The song of angels encourages them to give glory to God alone and to seek peace with others, far and near.
Conditions in the world today are marked by contrasts at least as great as those in Jesus’ time. Everywhere we see wildly contradictory instances of poverty and wealth, systems of tyranny and of justice, brutal violence and sincere attempts at reconciliation. Through it all, we are keenly aware of the need for a peace worthy of the name: just peace for all.
In this season, and in looking to the New Year, we in the World Council of Churches find encouragement in the potential for seeking peace that is to be afforded in May 2011 at the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC) in Kingston, Jamaica. Taking as its motto “Glory to God; Peace on Earth”, the IEPC will serve as a culmination of the churches’ Decade for Overcoming Violence (2001-2010) and an occasion to renew our common commitment to the establishment of a just peace among peoples.
We encourage you to make certain your church is participating in the IEPC as all WCC member churches have been invited to send representatives to the convocation. For the WCC and its member churches peace is a vital part of living the fellowship and building Christian unity.
In these days we hear anew the opening accounts in the life of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Our hearts and spirits are refreshed once more. In response, we rededicate ourselves to the praise of God in highest heaven and to our ministries of peace on earth.
May the blessing of God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be with you always.
Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit
General secretary,
World Council of Churches