Christmas messages from South Australia’s church leaders
As the most trying year in memory draws to a close, SA’s church leaders have penned their thoughts ahead of Christmas.
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The leaders of South Australia’s Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Uniting and Baptist churches, along with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints reveal their messages of hope after a challenging year.
Patrick O’Regan – Catholic Archbishop of Adelaide
When we think of the first Christmas, we sometimes think of the Silent Night, Holy Night type, where all is calm all is bright.
Yet the first Christmas was entirely chaotic and dangerous. It was winter; two travellers, one heavily pregnant, make an inconvenient trip of about 150km. Getting there was only part of it, when they arrived, as we know, it was Mary’s time and there was no room for them. You might think that God might have got things better organised. It is as if God actually doesn’t mind a little chaos.
This year we all have experienced the unwelcome and sudden chaos and uncertainty that COVID has bought into our lives. It has all taken its toll on us. And now we find ourselves celebrating Christmas. It’s a reminder that the kind of God we have is a God who first comes to us; a God who is not only God for us, but God with us; a God who reminds us that we are not alone, especially it seems in chaos and uncertainty.
Our joy at Christmas is not simply the celebration of another birthday. It celebrates that we have someone who is our light. One who can show us the path of life. One whose light accompanies us, especially in the darkness. If Christ is that for us then Christmas also challenges us to become that light in our world. This is my first Christmas in Adelaide, and I thank you for your welcome. I know strongly that despite all the challenges that this year has presented, we are not alone. May Christmas 2020 be a time of great peace, trust and forgiveness, for you and your families and friends. May we rediscover Jesus Christ, our true light. God is good, good indeed.
Bishop David Altus – Lutheran Church of Australia
Distancing and being kept apart from people we know and love has been hard during 2020. We have learnt to value each other’s presence anew through being kept apart, unable to be close and present with and for each other for a time.
Sometimes God too seems distant and even absent from us. We feel a sense of separation from him as our creator. At times of natural disaster or a pandemic, and in our personal loneliness and grief we wonder why, and whether God cares or even exists.
Christmas celebrates the God who comes to join us in the life we live here on his earth with the same breath he gives us each day. God comes to us in the person of Jesus Christ to be present with and for us, in all of life, the good and the bad.
God doesn’t distance himself from us or wash his hands of us because of our personal and communal sins. He comes in Jesus Christ to forgive and save us from them.
Christmas celebrates the presence of God on his own earth in the flesh, in 3-D, in real life, in real time. Jesus who walked, talked, touched and blessed the lives of people in hands on ways, introducing and bringing God’s forgiving and life-giving presence personally to them, whatever their circumstances.
The Bible says “neither death nor life … the present nor the future … will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 38-39). The gift of his loving personal presence is available to everyone, always. So however you experienced 2020 I pray that the presence of Christ with and within you will bring you comfort, peace, joy and hope, not just about the new year, but forever.
John Orth – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Adelaide
At Christmas we celebrate the birth, life and teachings of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He was born in Bethlehem in the humblest of circumstances. He went about doing good, ministering to others – especially the disadvantaged.
When Jesus was born, angels proclaimed, “On earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14). It has been a challenging year, but this promise remains the same today.
As a church community we have been focused this December on an initiative to #LightTheWorld. It is an invitation to transform Christmas into a season of service, to touch hearts and change lives by doing the things Jesus did – feeding the hungry, comforting the lonely, visiting the sick and afflicted, and showing kindness to everyone. Jesus said, “Ye are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). #LightTheWorld is the perfect way to let our light, and His light, shine brightly. We invite everyone to get involved!
As we serve and lift others in the community, we are all enriched and blessed. It helps brings further substance and meaning to our lives. Most especially, it helps us experience the peace and happiness that Christ offers to all.
Rev Mike Mills – Baptist Church of SA
Bethlehem 2000 years ago was a tiny village, a backwater off the beaten track where nobody would have expected anything special to happen. Bethlehem a generation later was a town of mourning, of mothers weeping for their lost children, of a generation of girls growing up without any boys to play with.
Bethlehem 1000 years ago was a place of war, as Muslims and Christian empires fought for control of the holy land and innocent bystanders paid the price. Bethlehem today is a place of agonising tension, a town surrounded by a wall, separating families and neighbours, whose children are growing up without freedom and without hope. Bethlehem is a town whose stories reflect the darkness of our world – stories of grief, doubt, confusion, and longing.
And yet this week millions of people all over the world will sing the words of the carol “O Little Town”, proclaiming Bethlehem as the place where light shines in the darkness; where the hopes and fears of all the years are met once and for all. Because into the darkness, in the midst of pain and suffering, into a world of despair and desperation, God was born as a baby. King Jesus has come.
The long hoped-for-One has entered our world. He came into the darkness to bring His light.
He came vulnerably, submitting himself to pain and sickness, to the effects of broken relationships and unmet dreams.
He experienced grief and loss, sorrow and temptation, conflict and violence.
The good news of Christmas is not found in pretending that there is no darkness in our world. It is in the hope of a God who enters into the darkness and brings the light of His very being. In a different and difficult year, may we ponder anew the unexpectedness of finding peace even in the storm, hope even in the doubt, or joy even in the darkness.
And might we be drawn to explore further the good news of Jesus, and what it might mean to meet with him wherever we are.
Bronte Wilson – Moderator, Uniting Church in South Australia
There are two words that summarise 2020 – “challenge and change”.
We have been challenged in significant ways – challenged to consider our priorities, challenged to show compassion, and challenged to persevere.
We have witnessed and undertaken rapid change – change in the way we do things, change in the way we engage with others, and change in how we function as a community.
Our ability to remain connected under such extraordinary conditions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has required us to become flexible and innovative in how we maintain and find even greater strength in our faith.
However, connecting is so much more than posting worship online or dropping something in a letterbox. It is personal and meaningful. Connecting with community remains at the core of who we are as a people of God. It is offering to help your vulnerable neighbour and I am encouraged by the willingness of people to continue to engage with the wider community and beyond.
As we come to the end of this year and move to a New Year may we also be inspired by the verse from Isaiah 43 Behold I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth … I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. It is worth reflecting on these words as we find the courage we need to step into 2021 with a renewed sense of community and of hope.
My prayer is that we will be open to the new things that God is doing among us. As you celebrate this Christmas may you experience God’s love and peace in new and unexpected ways.
Geoff Smith – Anglican Archbishop of Adelaide
This year, perhaps more than most, I am really glad Christmas is just about here. I am always a fan of Christmas – I love it. I love Christmas because the whole community stops to celebrate the birth of Jesus. That birth is so important we even have a public holiday. The birth of Jesus says to the whole world that God has not forgotten us. God has not left us to our own devices. We are not God-forsaken but God-cherished. And that is an incredibly important truth at the end of a very challenging year.
An important question, though, is “So what?”. The ‘So what’ is that God has a plan for the world. God’s plan is the healing of all things – the planet, the people, the world. That plan really began to unfold in the life of Jesus. We see the plan beginning to be realised through the things Jesus did – he healed people, he freed people, he reconnected people with each other and with God. These were signs of what is to come.
We don’t know when that time will come but we know the lead-up began with the birth of Jesus which was proof positive of what will happen. After a tough year it’s so good to be reminded that God isn’t finished yet and God loves us and yearns for our wholeness and the wholeness of the planet. There are two things we can do.
We can trust in God and God’s future for the world. Second, we can share God’s healing work right now. Every time we show love and care, compassion and generosity we are co-operating with God in God’s work. Christmas is great in its own right, but it points to something even greater – the healing of all things. Have a great and joy-filled Christmas. God is with us.
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