Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury spreads message of festive cheer

Bishop Mark Davies told his parishioners: "In the last days of the Christmas holidays a certain peace descends over our communities. It is one of the few moments of the year when the frenetic pace of contemporary life is replaced by gentler, quieter days. And in the peace Christmas brings we now begin a New Year and with it a new decade.

"Following a General Election campaign marked by entrenched divisions and angry voices, the Christmas celebration has brought families, communities and all generations together. For Christmas literally gathers us around the same table, not allowing us to forget those who might otherwise be forgotten or ignored. At the end of a tumultuous year, the celebration of Christ’s birth takes us beyond contentious opinions to that vision of faith which held our nation together from the beginning. For in the birth of a tiny child, we recognise God made visible and see anew the value and dignity of every human being.

"Christianity can never be reduced to an idea or an ethical path, it is always an invitation to encounter an event, a Person who gives to all our lives new horizons and sure direction. The God who spoke to us in many ways finally spoke in a way all humanity can readily understand in 'a child born for us, a son given to us' (Isaiah 9: 6). A new-born child seizes our attention and our hearts, and Christmas declares this was how God chose to speak. In the powerful phrase with which Saint John’s Gospel begins, we can say, 'The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw his glory' (Jn. 1: 14).

"God’s eternal word became small, small enough to fit in a manger, He became a child, so that the word could be grasped by us all. At the first Christmas, this invitation was given to shepherds followed by the wise men from the East remembered on January 6 who represent in the Gospel all the peoples of the earth. They all found the same sign in'a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger' (Lk. 2: 13).

"Seven centuries ago, it was the Brothers of Saint Francis of Assisi who on their arrival in Shropshire first assembled Nativity scenes, to bring into sight what had first been seen in the cave of Bethlehem. At Shrewsbury Cathedral, we continue this Franciscan custom shared by so many churches across the county. Pope Francis tells us that in such a simple way we are led to glimpse the God who came among us as a child. 'It seems impossible, yet it is true,' he writes, 'in Jesus, God was a child, and in this way wished to reveal the greatness of his love: by smiling and opening his arms to us'.

"May the Christmas celebration which has brought us together and long guided our path through history, continue to be the sure and gentle Light to guide us in the New Year ahead."