The blessings of courage for Christmas
A message from Archbishop Claude Miller
This Christmas I wish you peace and joy — the peace that passes all understanding, and the joy that came down from Heaven to be born in a stable in Bethlehem. And I hope you have a tree, some treats and turkey too. But most of all I hope you will share with others the precious gift of your love of Jesus and his many blessings.
At the November meeting of Diocesan Council I told the members that I love Jesus. In turn I asked all of them to raise their hands and say out loud that they love Jesus too. Of course they all did. They knew they were in a safe place.
This all took place following the House of Bishops when we spent a day talking about congregational development and came to the conclusion that it can and will only take place at the local level. Congregational development — a major part of the transformational change we want to see in this diocese — will happen when we tell others that we know and love Jesus, when we share what he means to us personally, when we tell others what a difference Jesus makes in our lives.
As bishops we also said we would lead the way. That is why I confessed my love of Christ to the council and asked them to do the same to me.
The General Thanksgiving in Morning Prayer exhorts us to “show forth thy praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives.” I think for many of us, however, it is easier to model the Christian life — to worship, pray, study, feed the starving, clothe the naked, comfort the suffering — than it is to tell others how much we love Jesus and how grateful we are to have him in our lives.
For many of us, including me, this is a daunting task. I am just now finding the courage to tell people how Christ has made a difference in my own life.
I hope you will find the courage too and suggest this is a good time to start. In the Christmas season those who flounder on the flimsy edges of faith, and even those on the secular path to who-knows-where, have time for Jesus in the manger. Even if they don’t believe he is THE reason for the season, they at least acknowledge he is one of the reasons.
During the reign of the White Witch in C. S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (part of the Chronicles of Narnia) it was “always winter but never Christmas.” A cold time indeed, especially for the English children traveling through that enchanted world. However would they manage without the family feast, Christmas treats and the visit from Father Christmas?
In the end they didn’t have to endure winter without Christmas after all, but of course it wasn’t all about food and gifts anyway. It was about God’s gift to us. It was all about the Saviour.
“In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ 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 he favours!’” (Luke 2:8-14)
There is no doubt that Christmas, as we celebrate it in the western world, is a mixed blessing for Christians. Even before the last “trick-or-treat” is uttered we are smothered by Christmas “stuff” and drowned in sentimental syrup.
To be fair though, we too have been known to drizzle a dollop of sentimental syrup over our portrayal of the story Luke so eloquently told. And Heaven knows we have trees, treats, turkeys and Santa. We prefer to call him St. Nicholas, but whatever we call him, he is the epitome of generosity. I hope his spirit fills the needs of you and yours.
Archbishop Claude Miller is Metropolitain of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada and Bishop of Fredericton.
Diocesan Communications
22 December 2009
