Written by Rev Deacon Paul Owen
St Edward the Confessor Catholic Church (part of the Catholic Parish of St Swithun Wells)
on behalf of Churches Together in Chandler’s Ford
We are well into December and our senses are full of the coming of Christmas. Whether it’s the Christmas lights springing up all over the area; the Christmas songs we hear all the time in shops or on the radio; the adverts on the TV encouraging us to buy more food and presents than we need. But this year, perhaps more so than in previous years, we prepare for Christmas in a world faced with difficult times. A world in which suffering, wars and political uncertainty are a greater threat than they have been for many years.
It got me thinking about what it is that is special for us as we approach another Christmas. What is it we look for at Christmas? For us Christians, this period of preparation for Christmas is called Advent. The central theme of Advent for all Christians is hope. But for each one of us, where do we find our hope this Christmas?
On Christmas Eve this year, Pope Francis will open the holy door of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome and inaugurate the Jubilee Year with the invitation to all of us to be Pilgrims of Hope. Hope, Pope Francis says, is badly needed in our times with its suffering, wars and climate change. A Holy Year is called every 25 years and is ‘holy’ because it calls us to prayer, repentance and charity. The Pope is inviting us to pray for a renewal of hope and to re-establish in joy a right relationship with God; with one another and with creation.
But we spend so much of our time and effort this time of year in rushing here and there trying to get all the preparations finished whether it’s shopping, buying presents and wrapping them as well as preparing food and countless other domestic chores. Yes, we want to have a good time with our families, enjoying a break from work and generally relaxing. But what are we doing it all for and where is the hope we need in all this activity?
At Christmas, we celebrate the birth of the hope of the whole world. Jesus Christ, the light of the world, the Word of God, was born among us as a helpless human baby. Jesus would learn to speak in human words, words which we can take to heart and understand. As a baby, Jesus shared our limitations and our helplessness. Yet, it is precisely because of his willingness to meet us on our terms that he comes in a way that we can understand.
God is bigger than we are but a baby is smaller. We can hold and cuddle a baby. Christmas tells us that God became a tiny baby so that in Jesus, the Word of God was spoken in our words, in our times and in our hearts in an eternal dialogue of love. Christmas reveals God’s voice and encourages peace in our time. When Pope Francis opens the Holy Door he will be inviting people of all faiths and none to experience the light that is God in Jesus Christ. God, through that Holy Door, says to anybody and everybody, “Come in, whoever you are. Enjoy the light who comes into the world just for you. Let me speak to your heart. Become a Pilgrim of Hope.”
All of us need hope in our lives. The invitation to enter in, to become a pilgrim of hope is for all of us, whoever we are and wherever we are. So, why not take that step and enter through the door of one of the churches in Chandlers Ford this Christmas. You will be most welcome. And who knows, you might just find that sense of meaning and of belonging which gives us all hope in this present life, whatever the world situation, and in the life to come.
Written by Rev Deacon Paul Owen
St Edward the Confessor Catholic Church (part of the Catholic Parish of St Swithun Wells)
on behalf of Churches Together in Chandlers Ford
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