A Christmas Message

If you ask most people what they like best about Christmas, I suspect that one of the top answers would be "the presents": the surprise of the unexpected gift, the delight of just the right toy, long awaited special somethings. All of these contribute to the joy associated with the bundles left wrapped beneath the tree.

If you ask others what they dread most about Christmas, I suspect that one of the top answers would again be "the presents": the unbearable weight of expectation, the fear of disappointment, the burden of debt and the cost of wish-fulfillment.

For me there is little doubt that the best thing about Christmas is not so much presents, but presence – the presence of God entering human history in the form of a child. Born into poverty in a land dominated by an occupying force, the birth of the Christ child resonates throughout history to this present day, bringing joy and hope to all who name Christ as Saviour and Lord.

But this presence came at a high cost. Jesus Christ, God in human form, enters human history not to demand obeisance and regal treatment, but to be rejected by his peers, betrayed by his friend, deserted by his followers, humiliated and tortured by the military and finally abandoned to die. The cost of this presence amongst us was unbearably high.

It is ever so easy, but grossly mistaken, in our consumerist society to believe that our valuing of the worth of another person can be measured through the cost of how much we spend at Christmas. It is not the cost of presents that demonstrates the depth of our love, but rather the quality of our presence amongst those we love that shows whether we truly care. It is easy to swipe the card and punch in the digits for the purchase; not so easy to spend time bringing joy to others by doing what would not normally do in order to bring pleasure to another. It is Christmas Presence, not just Christmas Presents that shows our love.

This presence is not only for those known to us, those loved ones and families, but is best demonstrated also amongst those who due to age, illness, refugee status or homelessness are not able to look forward to any meaningful Christmas. Spending time with and alongside our brothers and sisters who find themselves in these positions is love indeed.

But not all have the choice to demonstrate their presence at Christmas, no matter how they may wish to.

There will be those families whose hearts turn to men and women serving abroad, those spending the day working in emergency services, and those who have been incarcerated. These families know more than most the cost of presence and how even the most wonderful present cannot replace or make up for the absence of a loved one. Whilst for the bereaved the first Christmas without their loved one can be one of the hardest times. The recollection and celebration of lives past for those who mourn can never substitute for the presence of those whom they miss so deeply.

At Christmas we celebrate Christ amongst us by showing to one another that love shown by God himself towards the entire human race, through the Incarnation. God took human flesh and came to live amongst us. At the time we did not recognize him and nailed him to a tree. Acknowledging now his humanity and divinity, we recognise in each other the divine spark and extend His embrace to one another.

Of course there is no better place to speak and sing of that divine love than at Christmas and Carol services. According to recent research attendance at such Church services is on the rise, with 40% of the population going to a church during the Christmas season. Cathedral services are proving to be particularly popular, and the Minster in York is amongst the busiest in the country. At York Minster, there are now two Festivals of Nine Lessons and Carols which have been arranged to meet demand – one on the 23rd December and one on Christmas Eve - with almost 3,000 people expected at each. A special Crib Service on Christmas Eve, where younger members of the congregation are invited to dress as shepherds and angels, sees approximately 1,000 parents and children enjoying being part of a 'living Nativity scene'.

Part of what makes such services special is the shared story of Christmas which we continue to re-tell to generations old and new. I have lived through almost 60 Christmases and even though I became a follower of Christ at a young age, I still find that I marvel anew at some parts of the Christmas story that strike with a different resonance as we hear it echo down through the centuries.

This year the readings will be taken from St. Luke's account of the birth of Christ, and the refrain of "no room at the inn" resonates in a particular way for us in this society as we consider those who may be shut out or excluded from our festivities. As a society we can take a measure of our collective health by looking at the way we treat some of the weakest amongst us: the homeless, the refugees and asylum seekers, the frail and aged and the mentally ill. Is there room for these at the inn we build together as society ?

In York the work of projects such as the ArcLight centre – which moves into its new premises this year – reminds us of the particular needs of those homeless people whose lives have been challenged by mental illness and addiction. I spent some of my Christmas last year with the residents at Arc Light and have since been back to see how the work of the volunteers and staff of this project have been able to provide a route not only out of homelessness but also a safe place for people to put their lives and personal stories back together. I do not believe it is a coincidence that ArcLight grew out of the work of a parish Church in York, and that the minister of that Church now chairs the board of the charity that has grown from a desire to include those who live their lives on our margins,

However you encounter the Christ-child this Christmas, may you recognise in the friend and the stranger, the presence of God and may the joy of the risen Christ, born anew, keep your hearts in joy and peace.

Happy Christmas.