‘The light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not’ (John 1. 5) – these beautiful words from the great Prologue to St John’s Gospel will be heard in churches and cathedrals across the land as people gather for carol services and Christmas Eucharists. When the days are the shortest, when we find ourselves in the deep recess of winter, we are given reassurance of God’s love and saving power as the eternal Son steps into our world and assumes our humanity. In Christ, God has taken each season of our life and bound it to his own, warming our souls, and opening the way to eternal life. The story begun at Christmas unfolds towards the events of Easter, the Passion and the Resurrection.
This Christmas some in this country will face a choice between heating their homes and buying food. Across the world many people’s lives have been buffeted by war, violence, or civil unrest. We do not need to look far for evidence that there is an uncomprehending darkness in the world. But Christmas reassures us that God is with us in Christ and we, in response, can confirm our resolve to pray and work for peace with justice because the light of the Christ child emboldens and deepens the fire of faith that burns within us.
Above the Venerable Bede’s tomb in Durham Cathedral are written some words of the great saint: ‘Christ is the Morning Star, who, when the night of this world is past, gives to his saints the promise of the light of life, and opens everlasting day’ (Commentary on the Apocalypse, II. 8). Christ’s Incarnation is the herald of a new and perfect dawn. We have yet to enter fully into that new day, but the Church’s responsibility is to invite others to walk joyfully in Christ’s light, even as day dawns around us.
In Christ, we have light in the darkness. Because of Christ, the darkness in the world cannot overcome God’s purposes. ‘I am the light of the world’, says our Saviour whose mercy is over all (John 8. 12). ‘In your light we see light’, says the Psalmist (Psalm 36. 9). And we, too, can live in that light this Christmas season and in the years to come, as we follow Christ into the perfect, eternal day.
I wish you and those you love a joyful Christmas and a peaceful new year.
+Christopher
