Nollaig Chríostóir Duit

By

 


Once more we prepare to celebrate the nativity of Jesus Christ.

We rejoice to hear anew the proclamation of the angel:

Today in the town of David, Bethlehem in Judea, a saviour has been born to you.

A Saviour has been born for us; a Son given to us.

Christ, in becoming human allows us to share in the glory of His immortal nature. He frees us from death and the power of sin and darkness. This promise of salvation is ours and so we rejoice in the knowledge that God is now with us.

Our world is overshadowed by war, injustice, oppression, division, and selfish concerns, but the Good News proclaimed by Christ continues to offer us salvation and hope. His words speak to us today; they reassure us; and fill us with hope:

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.

Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.

I am the way, and the truth and the life.

I am the good shepherd.

I am the bread of life.

As Christians, whatever our particular 'tradition', we profess and proclaim that the Divine word is made flesh and is the true light that enlightens all people. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, with the spiritual acceptance of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the only-begotten Son of the Father came into our midst. In absolute humility He was, and is, embedded in the world; and embedded in our hearts.

This child will grow to His maturity and He calls us to accompany Him. We are invited to live our lives in His company. There will be days of joy and there will be days of sacrifice. It will be His ultimate sacrifice that will lead us all to glory. Only when we are bathed in the light of His resurrection can we begin to comprehend our own existence and our eternal destiny.

This helpless child will become the man upon the Cross, offering the embrace of His love to the whole world. As heralds of peace, let us embrace one and all.

Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace to all people of good will..

May the light of hope illuminated by the Holy Spirit burn within our hearts this Christmas.

May the light of God’s love shine through us this Christmas and in the New Year.

May our witness of faith be an invitation for others to believe in the gift of salvation that Christ offers us all.

Happy Jack wishes one and all a Blessed, Joyful, and Peaceful Christmas.

Comments

  1. Anonymous20 December 2024 at 16:01

    A blesséd Christmas to everyone!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ray Sunshine20 December 2024 at 17:53

    And a very happy Christmas to you too, Jack, and to Mrs. Jack, and to the younger generation of Jacks, and to your grandchildren Lucy and Seth.

    I’m guessing that the unidentified language up at the top there is of either Caledonian or Hibernian origin. In either case I can only reply, Feliz Natal para todos! Happy Christmas, everybody!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Happy Jack20 December 2024 at 19:28

    Irish Gaelic, Ray.

    Christmas of Christ to you - intended to emphasise the Christian roots of the holy day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lain21 December 2024 at 10:33

    皆さん、メリークリスマス！

    A very merry, happy and blessed Christmas to one and all.

    Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One, and the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One! Angels, with shepherds, glorify Him! The wise men journey with the star! Since for our sake the Eternal God is born as a little child.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bell21 December 2024 at 11:27

    In many people's memory, Christmas was not a good time. Perhaps that's because it's the one time of the year when people have traditionally let the good become the enemy of the perfect. If Christmas wasn't perfect, it was hell, and there was nothing in between. If ANYTHING went wrong at Christmas, it was magnified out of all proportion, and I suspect that phenomenon has become worse as society has become less Christian -- we've forgotten what it's actually all about.

    We've all had that horrible Christmas we just want to forget, but it's always the one that looms largest in our minds, no matter how old we get, and it's the one that sets the template. We should not allow that to happen. Christmas isn't about reindeer and snowy landscapes. If ever there was a time to get back to the hope-in-poverty of what Christmas is really about, we're living that time today. Forget Santa, think St Nicholas of Myra, and pray.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lain22 December 2024 at 12:04

      There's a lot of pressure on people to have a 'perfect' Christmas, which is often a hybrid of a romanticised Dickensian/1950s family Christmas that never existed. I was playing at an annual charity winter jazz concert last night, and chatting to people afterwards I've never seen so much stress and fear - fear of what's happening in the wider world, fear of not being able to afford a perfect Christmas, fear of what the new year holds. And then there are those people for whom Christmas is just a painful reminder of those they've lost, those who are no longer here, or of the dread that this might be the last Christmas that they or a loved one see.

      I think, for very many people, that the Light of the World seems dimmer and further away than it has ever been. And our churches can tend to forget these people, too, as caught up as they are in the joy and festivity and the sparkling baubles of the season - but Christ didn't come to bring joy to the joyful, he came to bring it to the miserable, the lonely, the cold and the poor.

      In the myth of the perfect Christmas, we've lost sight of the fact that its sacredness lies in its imperfection - God was made flesh in an imperfect world, born in an imperfect cave so that he might be reborn into imperfect hearts. As in the art of kintsugi, it's the very brokenness of the vessel that allows it to be repaired with gold.

      Delete
  6. Anonymous22 December 2024 at 11:17

    Cressida wishes you all a merry happy and holy Christmas Oh incidentally I love Christmas with carols, Santa ,reindeers, snow (just to look at on the tele i.e.) decorations, Christmas cake , Sydney rock oysters and all the other wonderful things. The birthday of Jesus is very very special and should be a happy time filled with generosity joy and kindness. This is what Jesus wants for us... to enjoy our time here on earth in peace and love , pray and communicate with him daily until we join him in the life hereafter (Heaven). That is what the nuns taught us and I am most grateful for it. Catholics are lucky.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

War Crimes and Genocide in Gaza?

By
Image
Back in May 2024, the question was posed:  Has Israel lost the war against Hamas? To recap: Israel’s original intention for counter attacking Hamas - its  “jus ad bellum,”  - i.e. the conditions under which states resort to war - was to recue the hostages and also to eliminate Hamas because of its ongoing threat to Israel. It was not revenge for the horrors of October 7 th , 2023, although that was the immediate cause. It was about the damage that Hamas could do in the future given it stated intent to annihilate Israel. Is Israel aiming for a realistic, achievable goals? Rescuing hostages is a clear and potentially achievable end. But is eliminating Hamas possible? How do you reduce civilian casualties in the face of Hamas tactics? Is her present strategy producing more chaos? Is her approach encouraging future terrorist attacks on her. Is there an alternative approach? As the war goes on and civilian deaths rise, questions increasingly surface about Israel’s conduct ...
Read more

Gavin Ashenden Calls on King Charles to Abdicate

By
Image
Gavin Ashenden, once Anglican chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II, has suggested that King Charles should step down from the throne, since the king “thinks political correctness is loathsome and the Church of England is all bunkum.” “Charles, save your soul," says Gavin, " Become Orthodox, become Catholic, and hand that whole mess over to people who thrive on pantomime and fakery.” The reason for this?  When Charles acceded to the throne during his Coronation he swore, like 500 years of monarchs before him, to “maintain the Protestant Reformed religion established by law and preserve inviolably the settlement of the Church of England.” As Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England, Charles' role as King is both a religious one and constitutional one.  Then ....  Last month a letter surfaced containing King Charles blunt criticism of the Church of England, as well as corporate capitalism in farming:  “It is money that drives everything and wisdom...
Read more

Black Friday - Assisted Suicide Passes Parliament

By
Image
After a 5 hour debate, MPs voted in favour of legalising assisted suicide by 330 to 275 - a majority of 55. Christian Concern : Christian Concern has said the vote in favour of assisted dying marks a “very black Friday for the vulnerable in this country”.  Andrea Williams, the group’s chief executive, said: “Today is indeed a very black Friday for the vulnerable in this country, but this is not over. “The proposals in this dangerous Bill have been completely exposed. The proposed safeguards are completely meaningless, and more and more MPs are waking up to that reality.  “This Bill will create more suffering and chaos in the NHS, not less, and if it goes through, the vulnerable will become more vulnerable. “MPs are voting for the Bill at this stage in the hope that it will be fixed, however, the legislation is framed in a way that means it can’t be changed.  “It must be stopped at third reading, and we will not give up working to protect life and the most vulnerable ...
Read more