A Christmas message from the Dean of East Anglia

At the Christmas Vigil Mass we listen to Matthew’s account of how Joseph, the man of honour, was addressed in a dream by an angel of the Lord, who said: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit.”

At the Christmas Midnight Mass, we listen to Luke’s account of the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem in Judea, we listen to the proclamation delivered by a chorus of angels to the shepherds: “Today in the town of David, a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”

On Christmas morning we listen to the prologue of John’s gospel: “the Word was made flesh, He lived among us, and we saw His glory. The glory that is His as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

At Christmas, our voices harmonise with the chorus of angels as we sing: “glory to God in the highest heaven and peace to all people who enjoy His favour.” At Christmas we are all called upon to undertake the pilgrimage to Bethlehem, at least spiritually, recalling that moment in history when Jesus Christ was born within the confines of the humblest environment, a stable.

This seemingly inhospitable location drew its warmth from the love emanating from its newly-arrived tenants and from the breath of the animals whose home it truly was. As soon as the child Jesus is born, He becomes subject immediately to the threat of violence, for earthly powers, driven by sinful jealousies and conditioned by unjust practice, conspire to suppress the truth that is now fully revealed.

At Christmas, the truth is not merely proclaimed with words, the truth is the Word made flesh, the truth is born into our midst, the truth becomes embedded in our very flesh, so that we can be set free from sin and fear.

As Pope St Leo the Great declared: “nobody is an outsider to this happiness.”