Titus 2:11-14
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.
This Christmas we greet the Prince of Peace as war and death rage in the land of His birth. It is a painful, awful and discomforting reality to come to terms with as we watch the daily news.
A greater contrast in hope, vision and aspiration cannot be drawn. We are forced to cry out, “What’s wrong with this world God so loves as to send His only begotten Son into it, and for that Son to make the ultimate sacrifice for us? Surely the hope, vision and aspiration of such a God is for a better world than the one we are presently experiencing. Certainly, a God of justice, forgiveness, grace and love demands no less than that we never tire in our efforts to make such a restored world a reality – to further bring into being His Heavenly Kingdom on earth.
The great irony, or better still, the miracle of it all is that this is precisely the Good News we celebrate and proclaim, at this time. God chose to enter this broken world to bring light where there is darkness; love where there is hatred; peace where there is discord; and hope where there is despair. In the person of His Son, Jesus the Christ, and the message He proclaimed, there is laid before us an example of not only WHAT the world can be, but more importantly WHO we can be – better than this. We have received the message; a message that says, ‘the greatest of these is LOVE.’ Love is the currency of God’s Kingdom.
So, when we see thousands of innocent lives destroyed, children massacred, women abused, masses left to die of hunger and the lack of basic necessities; when we hear the cries of families mourning the loss of loved ones through senseless and despicable acts of violence, let us not be afraid to call it for what it is – pure evil. It is the very antithesis of all that the Christmas Season and Christian Faith stand for, and what we ought not to tolerate, accommodate or turn a blind eye to.
The powerful message of the Incarnation is that it reveals what is possible when divine and human existences unite. Not only does the seemingly impossible become possible, but light, life and love are made the dominant aspect of such a unity.
May our celebration of Christmas be a prayer for the Prince of Peace to truly live in our hearts and minds. May we come to share the hope, vision, and aspiration He has for this world to be a better place. May we daily live and work to make this a reality for all. Let us pray for peace in the Holy Land, in our own country, and in all places of strife and destruction. May the Power of Love rule in our hearts and minds this Christmas and always.
On behalf of the clergy and people of the Anglican Diocese of Belize, my wife, Carla, and my family, a most blessed and joyous Christmas Season to you and your family.
Amen.
MERRY CHRISTMAS
Bishop Philip Wright